SHIFTING GROUND: ORNITHOLOGY LAB

A BUILDING RESPONSIVE TO EVER-CHANGING LANDSCAPE

Shifting Ground is a response to a theory of changing landscape over time within Kelley’s Island in Lake Erie, Ohio. The quarry is strategically filled with dredge over a 30 year period, and the building and program reacts to the scenario as the years go on. In this future, entitled the Green Island Scenario, the 6-story building adapts to become an ornithology laboratory to study the over 4,000 species of birds of the Great Lakes region. Housing a rehabilitation center, exhibition, science labs, and equipment storage adjacent to a staged wetland, this building is ideal for the function of the Green Island Scenario.

The facade of the building is composed of strategically placed CMU blocks acting as a solid net encompassing the structure. Land, and birds, can penetrate the facade, blurring the lines of interior and exterior, and create new architectural experiences as time goes on and the quarry continues to be filled. Doors on every floor ensures usability in every possible situation.