Another Americana centers around three core considerations as it approaches a new imaginary through the lens of dark rurality: Black movement, re-association with the land, and the sacredness of black joy. The project acknowledges the cultural wealth of African American culture that has grown over the last 400 years and explores African American recreation. Despite ancestral trauma, African Americans have found many ways to resist dehumanization. The project looks at recreational and cultural activities—such as music, crafts, dancing, and food—to draw on for inspiration for a new imaginary of Black rural life in the Hudson Valley. The project hones in a very specific mode of recreation for its significance in Black culture and expression in America: roller skating. Working with the existing structures on the site, the program starts with the entrance to the complex, the main plaza with a pavilion, an indoor rink, outdoor roller rink paths, a greenhouse, and on-site residences. The scheme of the roller rink areas takes advantage of the site’s rural location and moves away from the typical hyper-interiority of a skating rink.
