Populous Portfolio Benson Pui Lam Chan

Introduction

The Gruinard Island is located in Wester Ross, Northwest coast of Highland Scotland. The site presents quite a typical island landscape for highland area and used to be inhabited by flora and fauna similar to local area. However, disenfranchisement during the Highland Clearances, contamination of Anthrax bacteria by Operation Vegetarian biological warfare (sheep as guinea pig), and decontamination of the experimental area (removal and burning of soil, formaldehyde treatment) left the landscape scarred and with the stigma of being uninhabitable. Although it is recovering and slowly becoming habitable for the biosphere to return, it is nowhere near being back to normal. In this project, I am looking into an alternate form of decontamination and rejuvenation to the island and speculating on an alternate timeline where 2022 will mark the complete recovery and construction of a sheep-human co-habitation community on the contaminated site.

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Project Context and Program

Documentation of the Anthrax experiment on the Gruinard Island. The process of the experiment with the detonation bomb suspended from a crane on the field on the island. Spread of the bacteria and its epidemiology to the surrounding area. This project will address the decontamination of the site and rejuvenating the island’s biome.

There are 2 fronts in the context of this project that drives the development of this project. Firstly, the a use of weaponised anthrax bomb in preparation of Operation Vegetarian in 1942 on the island with sheep as test subject which killed all the sheep and contaminated the island to the state of inhabitability, on the left. Secondly, the history of Highland Clearance which drove habitants, including sheep farmers, to be evicted from the area, on the right. This project aims to address these issues by decontamination and introducing a sheep farming community back to the site.

To build a rammed earth focused community space where sheep-human junction within the building and the landscape, appealing to both inhabitants livelihood. And is built around the premise of a flexible, adjustable wooden skin system within which contamination encapsulating rammed earth will remain during the decontamination period before this wooden skin is removed.

Amerithrax

Yamal Peninsula Anthrax Outbreak

Apartheid Biological Oppression

Sverdlovsk Laboratory Leak Gruinard Island

Porton Down Aralsk 7

Tokyo Sarin Attack

Spread of Bacillus Anthracis: World Map

Journey of the Sheep: Map model

Program

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Building Moments and Functions

Exibition Room Physical Model

This building detail is the exterior walkway where on one side it is for the human to move from room to room, and on the other side it is connected to the ground where sheep are roaming. This creates a interesting junction between the 2 protagonist of the project. The exterior wall touching the ground is where the sheep will have access to and by creating the green wall with the wire mesh texture, plants can grow onto this wall which invite sheep to eat those plants and help the earth material goes back to the ground after it is decontaminated.

In order to address two major concepts of this project, I developed these models to test the architecture elements in response. On the top left, these parts all contribute to the system of decontamination of the soil by exaction and kiln firing or chemicals to kill the bacteria. On the right, the sheep feeding wall creates a junction between the two protagonist of the project, the sheep and the people. I also wanted to create a coherent architectural language, the exhibition room model on the bottom left mirrors the geometry of the excavator.

Excavator Wheels

Mixing Chamber

Kiln

Excavating Claw

Sheep Feeding Wall, Before and After

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Materials Development

With vertical rail on the rammed earth wall where water can slide between and the wall is used for water collection. The guteres and the bottom of the wall as part of the foundation catches these water and material and they can be reused or disposed of easily.

Rofts are made with terracotta clay in the kiln and there are different colour due to the variation of soil conditions.

Inspired by Martin Rauch’s house which has layer of concretes between rammed earth which will be a record of how much the wall has decayed but the gap between the rammed earth wall and the concrete edge over time. The retrieving rammed earth wall works well compared to the edge of the concrete. And the result shows that the layers are very different caused by the difference in the material condition.

Inspired by Joelle Eyeson’s project in Ghana, this wall with the bumps as visual effect and aesthetic decoration is achieved through indentation in the shuttereing. There bumps can also be helpful for recording the erosion of the wall.

This wall has holes that goes through the rammed earth wall where light and air can pass through. This allows interesting lighting and atmospheric conditions to be made with in a rammed earth wall space. This is achieved by putting acrylic tubes through the shuttering and blocking out earth from the tube space.

Inspired by concrete mesh mould which created complex organic surfaces that is perfect for my plant growth promotion wall. Where the cracks and indentation in the wall can allow plant seeds and roots to grow into. Rammed earth perfectly stuck inside the wire mesh creating the cracks.

Similar tot eh wall with wire mesh, this method of creating indentation within the rammed earth war by having bumps on the shuttering. These indentation can be used as pocket of space for plant growth.

One of the focus of this project is that there are stages of the building being built on a macro level, there are also a sequence of different stages within the construction of a room or even a wall, they can be broken down to 4 main stages, wooden structure, wooden skin, rammed earth wall, and the stuff and service of the spaces. These layers are built in this order to optimised the efficiency of the decontamination and occupation at the end. The exploded drawing in the centre of the page shows the roft, then the skin, structure and service of the building, and at the bottom the remaining rammed earth monument. By revealing the rammed earth, different textured surface for different function is shown, the material tests I performed are shown on both sides of the page.

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Master Plan and Project Timeline

Because of the complexity of the project and the array of different challenges that needs to be dealt with at different stage in the project, it is important to establish a clear timeline of what spaces are built at what time. This master plan colour coded the differenet part’s function and the sequence of developed and decontaminated over time. The project begins in 1987, immediately after the end of the of the experiment and removal of most heavily contaminated topsoil. The sequence of soil decontamination, to plants growing, to crofting with sheeps in isolated area will run parallel to the gradual building of pioneering community living in the area through the 35 years period. The project is split into 4 stages: stage 1, 1987-1990 building the living quarter for the pioneering construction community and the wooden skin of the main building; stage 2, 1990-2000 employing the excavator to decontaminate more land and collect earth material which will be used to fill the wooden skin main building with masonary foundation, rammed earth and stone heading; stage 3, 2000-2020, continue to decontaminate the rest of the site, building the exhibition spaces of the main building on the existing structure, transforming rooms that has finished its function into gardening and sheep farming research centre, which parallels with introducing farming community by turning decontaminated lands to garden and sheep crofting fields and living huts for the shepherds; stage 4, 2020-2022, finishing the project by removing wooden skin structure to unveil the monumental earth building within, removing earth manufacturing infrastructure to be used in other similar project, building viewing ports and pathway of the monument, and declaring the land safe for living and removing sorting pens.

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Long Section

There are 3 spatial elements that this building aims to achieve. Firstly, the element of a monument. Since this project is about reflecting on history and a correcting a mistake in the pass, the project needs a acknowledgment of its monumental value, remaining ghost of the building landscape stays and reminds visitors of its importance. Second focus is to create safe sanitised laboratory and workshop spaces where the decontamination and research of it can be conducted. Third focus is again, creating a space of harmony for both the sheep and the people to live in. The decontaminated land will be where the sheep crofting can be performed, and where new houses for the sheep farming community to live in can be built.

Year 3 Project Gruinard’s Redemption

Short Sections and Renders

Rendered Short Section 1: Kiln, Workshop and Living Quarter

Rendered Short Section 2: Quarry, Exhibition and Excavation

Short sections on the left shows the spatial elements of the building and how it is connected to the site. The renders on the right shows the atmospheric sceneries of the building. Top right shows the entrance of the building and bottom right shows the view from the balcony in the living quarter.

Introduction Year 2 Project Great Anadaman Fishery

DIRECTIONS

The North Sentinel Island locates in the Bay of Bengal, part of the Andaman and Nicobar island group, which lies a tribe, The Sentinelese people, that is disconnected from the world, practicing the symbiotic way of living till modern day, they one of the last tribes untouched by modern civilisation. In this quickly developing world, studying the symbiotic lifestyle that the Sentinelese is essential in order to rekindle our relationship with nature. However due to the fragile environment that they are living in and the historical context, this project aims to explore these ideas remotely with a different more modern tribe, the Andamanese, just across the narrow harbour.

Year 2 Project Great Anadaman Fishery

Project Development, Plan and Section

In order to promote and simultaneously not disturb the symbiotic living style of the Sentinelese tribe, this project looks upon the horizon to react to the indigenous Andamanese’s way of living, knowing development of modern society will eventually take away their livelihood. My project promotes their symbiotic lifestyle through the building of communal fish market that 1. practices the traditional sustainable way of food collecting and consumption, 2. spreads the local culture by bring in different people to experience the way these indigenous tribal people live their day-by-day lives.

Extrapolating the concepts of isolation and observation, applying that to the nearby dwindling Great Andamanese tribe. This project takes fishing, one of the most fundamental practice that combine their religion, craftmanship and culture, and turns it into a space for community. While staying true to the traditional Andamanese practice of fishery and philosophy of round communal intersection, The goal of this building aspires to become a paradigm shift for the Andamanese to return to this tradition through the repeating process of learning, practicing and spreading of the sustainable culture and finally become a beacon of a new Symbioscene.

Fish Market Model

Year 1 Project Dalston Herbal House

Plan, Section and Model

At the heart of the Ridley Road Market, this building aims to become the new beacon rejuvenation for this historical market. Taking tea making as the drive and focus for this project, this building serves as a sanctuary for the market goer to rest and experience a different culture from the environment. However, exploring the geometry of the building in relation to the street, and the use of different glass material in order to reveal and obscure different views, this building is also a satirical commentary on the pseudoscientific nature of a lot of herbal health and fitness culture in the modern days.