Under Pressure: High Tech, Low Tech, No Tech

“What pressing inquiries emerge for technologies of mechanical pressure in architecture? Can pressure act as a binder instead of chemistry?

Mechanical pressure can bind and stabilize matter through compression rather than chemical additives. Mechanical and gravitational forces can therefore replace the use of harsh chemical stabilizers.

Can pressure become an effective binding strategy for earth, fibers, and agricultural residues to produce blocks, walls, arches, and other structural systems?

The term ”“Under Pressure”“ reaffirms our pressing need for technological paradigms beyond the status quo. Students will revisit ”“failed”“ patent records in historic archives and case studies that are at the margins of machinery and architecture.

References to literature and technologies:

Cointeraux, François. École d'architecture rurale. Quatrième cahier, dans lequel on traite du nouveau pisé inventé par l'auteur, etc.[With plates.]. Chez l'auteur, 1791.

Anderson, Stanford, and Eladio Dieste. Eladio Dieste: innovation in structural art. Princeton Architectural Press, 2004.

Jeffroy, Thierry. ”“Compressed Earth Blocks: Manual of Design and Construction.”“ (1995).

CRATerre. Traité de Construction en Terre. Editions Parenthèses, 1989.

19th Century Hydraulic Brick Press (Henry Roberts / Bradley & Craven)”

“The workshop will unfold in two parts.

First, participants will engage in focused readings and case studies examining historical and contemporary applications of structural compression in architecture. These include examples ranging from early compressed arch bricks to contemporary compressed earth block systems and their environmental product declarations.

The second part of the workshop will involve a design-build exercise using compressed earth blocks on the GSAPP grounds. Soil from construction waste will be used. Participants will speculate on the role of pressure across high tech, low tech, and no tech contexts, including scenarios in which power outages or ecological disruptions require material systems that operate with minimal technological dependence.”

“Historical and archival case studies will be synthesized into comparative analyses that illuminate the past, present, and future of pressed construction systems.

A series of small-scale material investigations will contribute to GSAPP’s ongoing material atlas. The workshop will culminate in a full-scale demonstration: a modular structure composed of compressed blocks that offers a place to sit, gather, and dwell.”