Intertwined Landscape

Intertwined Landscape | Fall 2020

Inspired by climbing ivy, Intertwined Landscape is a conservation center that utilizes weaved piping for geothermal energy collection while creating a synthetic nature for animals and insects to dwell. The approach celebrates sustainability as an art form with its beauty and positive impact on the environment.

As climbing ivy grows upward, it sends tendrils that can attach themselves to virtually any surface. In this project, the same growth system is utilized to create the form on site. From the points, many lines are drawn, creating a density similar to fullgrown ivy. However, these lines are then consolidated to a more expressive form but still maintain the same allusion of ivy.

Mcfarland Park | Ames, IA

The Nature Conservation Center intervenes on the site as a self-sustaining structure. Similar to the growth of climbing ivy, the geothermal piping extends itself into the surrounding landscape and latches itself into the ground to harvest energy from geothermal heat. Conforming to the existing path, the structure becomes an attached experience of walking through the site.