Marina Oba - Building ephemeral matter in the Georg Lippsmeier collection

Summary

This video explores the enduring relevance of raw material-based architecture, focusing on practices that have persisted across centuries, particularly in the Global South. It highlights the importance of archives, such as the Institute of Food Truck and Bow Collection at the CCA, in preserving the history of indigenous construction techniques using natural materials like soil and vegetable fibers. Despite often being perceived as temporary or trivial, these structures are shown to reflect resilience, creativity, and sustainable environmental practices. The video also addresses the colonial biases in historical archives and emphasizes the significance of collaborative initiatives in preserving alternative knowledge.

Takeaways

• 😀 Architectural historiography has traditionally linked raw materiality to the concept of the 'Primitive,' yet collections at the CCA and other museums challenge these understandings.
• 🌍 The collections at institutions like the CCA and the Museum of Ethnographic Collections highlight constructions from the 20th century across diverse global regions, from Africa to Latin America.
• 📸 The Moopa's photography collection documents indigenous peoples and environments within Brazil, showing a diverse range of cultural and environmental representations.
• 🌱 Non-fossil fuel-based case studies, particularly those using soil and vegetable fibers, are common in urban and rural contexts throughout the Global South, illustrating sustainable building practices.
• 🗺️ Contemporary built environments in the Global South, including 20th-century constructions, still rely on traditional techniques and materials, which continue into the 21st century.
• 🛠️ Raw material-based architecture, though often seen as ephemeral, is actually long-lasting and vital for maintaining cultural, environmental, and social bonds over time.
• 🔄 The cyclical nature of raw material architecture demands ongoing maintenance and collective social mobilization, challenging the perception of these constructions as trivial or effortless.
• 👥 Knowledge about raw material techniques and technologies persists through generations, fostering resilience and sustainability in response to environmental crises.
• 📚 While historical archives are useful for advocating non-dominant materialities, they often carry colonial biases due to their European origins, requiring effort to decolonize and contextualize.
• 🌍 Architecture that leaves minimal environmental impact, as highlighted by the YouTube Clinic, encourages innovative and sustainable practices for the future, blending past, present, and future alternatives.

Q & A

What is the relationship between architectural historiography and raw materiality as discussed in the script?

The script suggests that architectural historiography has historically cultivated correlations between raw materials and concepts like the primitive, ephemeral, and trivial. It emphasizes the need to reconsider these notions, especially through the lens of collections like those at the CCA, which document diverse architectural practices and materials.

What do the collections at the CCA, particularly the food truck and bow collection, help to address?

These collections help to challenge and problematize conventional understandings of architecture, particularly by showcasing unidentified constructions from the second half of the 20th century and materials and techniques used in regions like Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America.

How do the Moopa's photography collection contribute to our understanding of architecture?

Moopa's photography collection focuses on a wide range of indigenous peoples and environments within Brazil, helping to document and preserve the architectural practices and materials of these groups, contributing to a broader understanding of architecture in the global South.

What is the significance of the non-fossil fuel-based case studies selected in the script?

The selected case studies, built with soil and vegetable fibers, showcase sustainable, non-fossil fuel-based building practices across more and less urbanized contexts in the global South, highlighting environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional construction methods.

What is the role of online cartographic platforms in investigating contemporary built environments?

The script mentions using online cartographic platforms to explore contemporary built environments in the same geographies, allowing for a deeper understanding of how architectural practices have evolved in different regions of the global South.

Why does the script argue that the longevity of raw material-based constructions challenges the idea of them being ephemeral?

The longevity of raw material-based constructions over centuries undermines the perception that they are ephemeral or inadequate. These structures have survived due to their social, cultural, and environmental significance, and their continued use and renovation show their resilience.

How are cultural and environmental bonds connected to raw material-based architecture?

Raw material-based architecture relies on the social dynamics of building and maintaining structures, which are deeply tied to land, environmental, and cultural bonds. These structures represent not just physical constructions but also collective agreements for preserving traditions and knowledge.

What does the script say about the maintenance and construction of raw material-based architecture?

The script highlights that despite the impression that raw material-based architecture is simple or effortless, it requires significant effort, collective mobilization, a variety of skills, and an extensive infrastructure, such as transportation networks and trade points, for maintenance and construction.

How do raw material techniques and technologies contribute to environmental resilience?

Raw material techniques and technologies are seen as a crucial source of knowledge, particularly in the context of the current environmental crisis. They offer sustainable alternatives to modern construction methods, helping to foster environmental resilience through their resourcefulness and adaptability.

What challenges exist in utilizing historical archives to advocate for non-dominant materialities and narratives?

Historical archives often carry colonial biases, as they were typically recorded by European settlers. This requires significant effort to contextualize and reinterpret the experiences of marginalized groups, making it challenging to fully advocate for non-dominant materialities and alternative narratives.