Text and Layout Updates for Research Book:
Site Analysis Diagram and Perspectives of Design/Production Process Still needs to be Added
Natural
Spaces
An essential mind
alteration is the beginning of our studies and exploration into ‘Artificially
Nature: Agritecture of Tomorrow.’ With the chosen site at Muang Bora,
Samutprakarn, we slowly needed to adopt and adapt through the complexity,
diversity and enclosure of the ______ squared kilometer area in order to
analyze. This shifting of perceptions gradually made us learn through the
natural spaces along with man-made spaces, gathering the intricacy and visceral
spatial qualities within. Through the initial three selected locations, we have
narrowed down towards one location that answers our interest for the concept of
‘the intertwining intervention between the wilderness side of nature and the
formally structured side of man-made objects’ - reflecting the term
‘Artificially Nature.’ The exploration has been carefully analyzed and
translated through photographs, plans, isometric drawings, plant taxonomies and
physical model.
Biodiversity
Our development of understanding the
artificial and the natural spaces of the site begins with the emergence of the
components, analyzing the types of plants and how each of them affect the
general whole. There are in total of six types of plants within the selected
area including the Franjipani tree, Bird Nest Fern, Dischidia, Maile Scented
Fern, Hoya Macrophylia, and the Red Rhipsalis. These six types of plants
produce a symbiotic relationship with one another, creating a degree of
dependecy, as observed, due to the nutritional needs, water/moisture content,
light and structural integetrity. Thus, the high level of biodiversity is one
feature we noticed during our study that makes it become a rich ecosystem.
Enclosure
The spatial qualities of our chosen
site was further elaborated through cutting plans at the intervals of every one
meter. We were able to see the level of enclosure it has created due to natural
behaviors as shown on the left. Firstly, the Franjipani tree and wooden
structure can be seen enveloping the space, thereby the enclosure of the space
produces an abundance of volume with climbing plants and other plants growing
from the ground. As it progresses up to two meters above ground, the Bird Nest
Fern supplies itself on the Franjipani tree from the formation through
composts. At this level of height, the Franjipani’s stem can be seen to divert
itself outside of the frame. The third and the fourth levels show how the
Franjipani’s branches spreaded itself widely in order to absorb in as much
sunlight. This lower density of enclosure defines the Franjipani’s necessity to
expand and have enough room for themselves unlike the climbing plants and other
plants on the ground that needs to be covered and have more reliance to each
other.
Complexity
With the differences in enclosure
and also biodiversity in types of plants, the requirements from each one of
them produce a complex system within the chosen site. The spatial and formal
complexity can be seen through the Franjipani’s nature to spread. On the other
hand, such plants like the Dischadia and the Red Rhipsalis desire for shade,
nutritions and a more compact environment. The images of the model on the right
depicts our analysis at levels in plan view and also the complexity between the
natural and the artificial elements in the site. The surrounding land of the
artificial/man-made objects creates an oasis-like ecosystem that slowly
progresses through time intertwining the elements of man-made shown in pink and
the natural elements shown in green. At various stages of height and horizontal
intervals, the characteristics vary depending on the conditions of plants and
the transitions of space. We were able to investigate and uncover in great
detail of nature in this phase of the project.
Thanaporn Lam’s
Interest:
Seldom
do we appreciate and understand nature for their spatial qualities they create
and for techniques they share for survival. This deliberate need to adjust
myself to identify their importance in their presence, therefore, started off
with sourcing the forces of each plant on their influence to behaviors and
characteristics. Breaking the components into five parts, Pin and I divided the
conditions including the degree of moisture, water, light, nutrition needs and
structural independence. My main interest was in locating the source of each of
the condition. Light for example follows the South East and West direction,
therefore the Franjipani expands itself widely to absorb in sunlight. Rain and
degree of moisture mostly affected the Dischidia, Hoya Macrophyla and Red
Rhipsalis as it hides away from sunlight and enclosed themselves beneath the
man-made structural support and the Franjipani. The diagrams above show the
graph of conditions per tree and also the sourcing of five types of conditions
on the site. With this, I was able to take the complex and intricate network of
events to slowly understand the changes within the natural space. This method
was able to fascinate me on how simple it looks if unobserved, but this small
site contains many degree of elements within that one must explored to
understand.
Plantigation
Maize, bearer of the civilization,
has its roots deeply tied with the New World for approximately 7,500 years. The
evolution of maize/corn was deliberately created for its role to become
domesticated and excessively supplied for the ever-increasing needs of the
human population. Highly productive, in rapid pace, under warm weather and
moist soil, corn spreads itself to concern majorly in ingredients of over four
thousand products from food to materials, historical events from Slavery in
Africa to Colonialism, ornamentation of architecture through Americanization,
and, most of all, in the power in shaping the economy, social and environmental
patterns of the world. Thus, the decision for maize as my specific plant to
investigate in great detail on its contribution to architecture of tomorrow.
As it is currently the most-planted
and most processed crop in the world with over eighty million acres, spreading
itself on every continent around the world, maize was once an unknown plant of
the New World originated from Mexico. Its discovery is still a mystery, however
claims by Francisco Hernandez Boncalo has predicted that through modification of
the 20th century from the genus of Zea was the maize created. Some possibility
targeted the roots toward teosinite, a type of plant from history that has been
known for its survival in the wild, in hybrid with an ancient extinct maize,
only applicable from man-made intervention. Nonetheless, this man-made
intervention has prominent action in facing the future, and taming the wild for
domestication in today’s agriculture. It has closely eliminate nomadic
lifestyle in return for residing in a single location through hybridization. As
a product of an essentially manipulated circumstance, maize, to me, is
intriguing to study as part of my plantigation research to how an unknown plant
becomes the most influencial plant of every human being on Earth.
As part of my study, I was most
interested in exploring the economical values of corn through its production
and consumption aspects. This includes the scope of cornfield, production plant
processing machines to products made by maize as shown in the diagrams in this page
and the next. Firstly, by understand that maize has a unicentric
characteristics, having male and female inflorescence in one plant, allows the
realization that maize is easy to pollinate, cross pollinate and hybridize than
other plants. Therefore, maize becomes the best result in responding with the
fast pace lifestyle and the increasing consumption of the population in this
century. Under its seven months time span and its specific environmental
condition such as an annual rainfall of 800 to 1200 mm, strong sunlight and
temperature between 10 to 19 degree celcius, maize is still possible to grow in
every continent of the world, mostly United States, Mexico, China, Argentina as
examples.
The Agriculture of
Maize: Cornfield
The essential component of Zea mays
lies with the foundation or the maize kernels in reigning the economy. These
kernels are composed of a large percentile in biomass from endosperm between
35% to 85%. They also include the pericarp or the outer layer and germ as the
inner layer. These endosperm contains starchy materials that can be turned into
sweeteners, drinks, clothing products, and paper production as examples. While
the oil materials can be made into ethanol. Like DNA sequence of human, maize’s
moecular biology is determined through its sequence in germ of the kernel.
Technology enables the ability to decode these sequences and fragmented them
with electric current for alteration. Therefore, a lot of companies sought to
take advantage of this discovery, transforming them as genetically modified
organism with mixture of genes from other species. Through this action, the
industries placed them for intellectual property law with patents to the corn
kernels. This means that they were able to genetically modified them so that
the kernel can only be planted once, while the next one from the planted corn
ear will deformed itself unlike the natural pollination process. This brings in
business and capitalism into the agricultural field and instead opt for
quantity than quality.
The Production Process
of Maize
After maize has been grown, it will
be sent for wet million process and dry milling processes as shown in the
diagram below. The dry milling process is the engine in production of ethanol,
running the economic value of corn and escalating their prices. On the other
hand, wet milling process will turn the corn into feed for animals such as pigs
and cows for meat, and sweetener products and other products into the
supermarket shelves.The increasing demands developed a system of a bushel of
corn to answer for expanding supply to produce an abundance of goods from items
with ingredients of high fructose corn syrup to plastic.
Purpose of Maize
Through this research, economy has
shown to overpower the nature of maize. There is a need for paradigm in maize
not as a technological innovative tools but for a man-made intervention towards
its essential values in terms of culture and agriculture. As a crop for
sustenance, it is important to find the correct balance in cornfield plantation
and its direct position in the society for the fast-paced technological era
that does not destroy the ecosystem.
Site
Research
The relationship between the plant
and its origin is always closely connected with deep meanings as history of a location creates
culture, traditions and values. The crop of sustenance, or maize, also
produce this connection with Mexico, influencing its people
just as much as the Mexicans intervening with the production of maize. In the Ancient
civilizations of Aztec Empire, previously located in Mexico City, the
domestication of maize has evolved to the belief in the Maize God, Centeotl. He
is the one who has guided harvesting during seasons and time of the day. He was
also known as the life-giver that dies temporary to sustain the civilization
with food and surpluses. Thus, he is the guidance from caves, source of human’s
origin, into light. Therefore, maize is often valued to its purity as a
gratitude for their sustenance, hence the term “Children of the Maize” for the
Mexicans.
As my initial interest was firstly
placed upon economic aspects, my motive has shifted after gaining knowledge and
information about maize during the phase of Plantigation. I was more keen to
see a different side of maize, thus finding my way towards Mexico, recapturing
the act of gratitude and the declining importance of the plant to the Children
of the Maize. The diagram on the right depicts an isometric view of my site, or
the Historic Center of Mexico City radiating around the Zocalo Square. The
purpose of my chosen site was to divert my proposal towards the cultural
background that is already rich in Mexico that reflects from layers and layers
of history to the present. Hence, it is questionable to seek an answer to
"What is maize in the modern world in this society?" Looking upon the
palimpsest of the site, it will reside amongst important buildings reflecting
events from Aztec’s civilization’s replica of Aztlan, place of
whiteness/herons, called Technotitlan, to Spanish colonial architecture with
the Churrigueresque style as the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral, and the
independence nation Mexico with its National Palace.
In addition to that, Mexico also
present a reliance of tortilla chips within the informal market called tianguis
where the majority population of Mexico would go to for street food. If maize
can be infuse into the daily life of the Mexicans, whilst connecting the rising
technology as the 3D technology; the agricultural aspects of maize can find its
own position in present time.
Keyword:
Urban Tianguis (Market) of Maize
Swaying of the stalk and the leaves
that glide together with the wind, as the tassel pollinates itself to the ear,
the Maize God has generously sacrifices itself to the birth and stability of
the humankind until the next cycle comes again. He, who temporarily dies, has
chosen his people over himself for their permanence through cultivation of the
maize.
Within the Historical Center of
Mexico City, a new reinvented tianguis system has emerged to serve visitors
with 3D technologically processed everyday diet meals like tortillas, tlacoyos,
tamales and flautas from the urban rooftop maize-field. The tianguis poised as
a medium between past and present, between unknown and familiarity with
objective to bring maize back as to its once actualized importance of the
cultural embedded meaning for Mexicans as the "Children of the
Maize." Through the location's vital palimpsest of significant events
translated as Aztec Empire's Templo Mayor, Spanish Conqueror's Metropolitan
Cathedral to the Modern internationalization of Mexico; the site is a challenge
to superimpose the layers of the context together, drawn with one essential
value: stability and permanence. In my perspective, the Mexican's gratitude for
their everyday diet through traditions of corn production and quality of
kernels to its purity will be diminished if the United States' massive quantity
of GMO corns and ethanol soon conquered the original. The only prevention is
for a symbiosis value of maize to be enforced towards the everyday life of the
"Children of the Maize."
The urban tianguis of maize follows
through a system of processes starting from the rooftop cornfields
surrounding the Templo Mayor ruins, or where the Aztec Empire's prophecy
happened. Through this cultural ties, the beginning of life for human beings
are led towards prosperity through agricultural system. The rooftop cornfields
are adapted to the city with a pyramidal space-frame superstructure
design that connects all elements together for coherency. The space-frame not
only be adapted for the weight for the cornfield and their activities, but also
to be adapted to the envelopment of processing plants on the rooftops
while turning the potential of corn to corn starch, and corn starch to polylactic
acid (PLA) filaments. This requires area for walkway for workers interaction
with each phases of the production, but also walkway towards rooftop visitors'
interaction areas as well. After the completion of PLA filaments from the
processing plants, the 3D printing machines, also held by the
superstructure on the rooftop will vertical led down to the ground level to
print ornamented motif blocks and foods for the new market
surrounding the ruins. Thus, the integration of 3D technology through PLA
filaments based from processed corn is a fundamental role in the connectivity
between the past cultural references of maize towards the present and the
future.
The project will involve the formation
of the market space through using the ornamented motif blocks fitted to the
superstructure; this will produce the details of the market space that will in
return shape the actions of the users. The use of 3D technological machines
will also introduce a new way in shaping the ways of consuming for the market.
There it was, gleaming itself for
the world to see. Its presence in Zocalo was filled with bright lights of
varietal motifs, emulating the sun. Wind blew against my collar and washed me
against the sounds drumming my ears. Little by little, slowly, it enclosed me
with every forwarded step ahead; I was consumed by the level of details that
enveloped me by 360 degree. Before I knew it, in front of me was an explosive
contrast of people chattering, footsteps clanking against the stone floor, 3d
technology printers emitting aromatic smell from printing masa tortilla, swift
motions from pots and pans, and a fainting music in the background. So this is
the tianguis and the cornfields that arrayed until the end of perspective line.
This is where the story begins.
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