In Situ

The Project Is Part Of Wesam's MPhil Project

Date: 2016

Location: Santa Pola , Spain

project Phase: Completed

Type: built project

Awards:

• The 15th Tile Of Spain Annual Award 

•  Morgan Sindall Prize Award On Construction And Building Practice. 

Partnership:  Salvado Gomis Aviño

More Than A Material

The Spanish Tiles Have More Stories Than The One Of Material, The Knowledge With Which These Tiles Transform Into Structures Is Equally Inspiring. However, The Craftsmanship Dimension In Tiled Structures Is Facing Serious Challenges In The Rapid, Mechanised And Systemised Construction Of Our Time. While Technology Seems To Have Favoured Other Types Of Structures More Than Thin-Tile Vaulting Ones, It Is Still An Essential Asset To Find Solutions That Empower The Traditional Know-How In Building Practice. In The Sense That Such Practice Is Closely Related To Craftsmanship, Technological Applications Should Help, Rather Than Replace, The Builder.

Architecture As An Act Of Design Is Not The Main Aim Of This Project. Rather, It Seeks Structures That Result From, And Are Described By, Simple In-Situ Applications In What Can Be Outlined As Self-Generated Structures. By Hypothesising That Structures Are Germane To The Inherent Properties Of Their Materials, Finding Simple In-Situ Solutions For Compression Based Structures Becomes The Motor Of Grassroots Local Construction.

In This Particular Context, The Role Of Architecture Is To Mediate Between Materials, Craftsmanship And Physics. In The Construction Of Gaudi's Ruled-Surfaced Vaults, Marrying The Ruled Surface Logic With The String Guidework System Is An Obvious Example. No Robotic Arms Or Heavy Machines Were Used But The Everyday Tools That Vault Makers Had, I.E. Strings. This Simple Technique Was Transformed To Somewhat Unprecedented Tool For Producing Complex Geometrical Compositions.