Building on the variances found within the norms that shape our built environment, this seminar will explore the outcomes of an on-going design studio which focuses on the contradictory relationship when difference is irrefutable and thus leveraging the tension found in the imperfect couple. The ‘Non-Identical Studio’ reflects on the difference not as a disadvantage but as a revindication of individuality where it appears to be non-existent. Pairs “coupled, doubled, mated, (screwed), matched” as the artist Roni Horn has observed, are linked together and make us perceive them as both single and a double identity. In the double we encounter traces of humor, solidarity, collaboration, friendship, and also desire. However, according to Horn, the contradiction is evident: “no matter if the pair is identical, you will search for the differences, and interestingly enough, you will find them.” Therefore, in the era of a precise virtual representation of a real world system, the work interrogates the political significance of the difference which breaks the established pattern. Can differences allow regulations to be maintained by periodically being broken?
The construction of a pair creates an ensemble, a spatial relation between objects. Siameses, replicas, unsetting doubles, almost-identical twins sitting far apart, close by, or directly across from each other, The pair’s companionable arrangement falls into a simple statement: “Two looks better than one.” In this thesis seminar, while looking at a set of two, we will make space for the physical, cultural, and political differences that exist on the continuum of human experience while responding to the following questions: How do we reconcile ourselves with the difference in architecture? Can we revert the idea of the established norm towards a more fundamental ambivalence of the diplomatic variance?
TEAM
Hannah Dorian
Jimmy Grote
The Non-Identical Seminar: The Variance of the Double
Arch 660 Thesis seminar | Fall 2023 | Ana Morcillo Pallares
Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
INDEX
KEYWORDS STATEMENT
ALIGNMENTS
RESEARCH
STATISTICS
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
remnant modern
/’remnənt/
a small surviving group, part, member, or trace remaining (Merriam-Webster)
what is left of a community after it undergoes a catastrophe (Anchor Bible Dictionary)
We conceive of a remnant as a representation of something that has been erased, often through violence or disaster. It reveals a lineage of what once was and offers a glimpse into the past. Therefore, it preserves historical narratives and an object or location’s story. modern /mädərn/ involving recent techniques, methods, or ideas (MerriamWebster)
the division of nature and culture; the idea that nature is a passive object to be studied and manipulated by humans, and that humans are superior (Bruno Latour’s assessment of how society views modernity)
Considering Latour’s analysis of the shortcomings of modernity, we propose an updated conception of ‘modern’ that embraces the complex web and interconnectedness of nature and mankind. To be modern suggests that one treats nature as an active stakeholder and participant in a process.
thesis statement
Humans built the first dam more than 5,000 years ago to preserve water for crop irrigation. Since then, civilizations around the world have continuously built more and more dams that have increased dramatically in scale. Since the early twentieth century, dams have become symbols of modernization by enabling civilizations to harness nature and manipulate it to advance humanity. The brute force of dam planning and construction has led to paradoxical outcomes.
• Dams displace people and threaten native ecosystems of flora and fauna to create newly hospitable environments.
• Dams deprive water for some to preserve it for others.
• Dams wreak environmental destruction to generate renewable energy.
These paradoxes beg the question: are dams truly modern?
Adopting Bruno Latour’s conception of modernity, one would likely categorize dams as a failed attempt to be modern. Dams represent humanity’s desire to manipulate nature to fit its own objective. In a truly modern world, a dam or similar built form would coexist with nature through a ‘give and take’ relationship, one where nature and humanity achieve a symbiosis.
But in reality, how would a truly modern dam manifest itself in society? How can the reimagination of an existing dam atone for its past destruction of the environment and surrounding cultural sites? What unexplored design opportunities exist within a built form intended to physically contain and divide nature?
void /void// adjective & noun not valid or legally binding completely empty a completely empty space repair /ri-’per/ verb to restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken to restore to a sound or healthy state
care for and encourage the growth or development of the process of caring for and encouraging the growth or development of someone or something
the ability to predict or the action of predicting what will happen or be needed in the future
combine (one thing) with another so that they become a whole bring (people or groups with particular
experimental /ik-,sper-ə’men-təl/ adjective relating to an operation or procedure carried out to test or establish a hypothesis relating to trying out a new procedure, idea, or activity
quasi-object /’kwā-,zī - ’äbjikt/ noun the (nonhuman) actant around which a network forms, which circulates and is translated by the interactions and other actants with which it is entangled.
trace /’trās/ noun & verb a mark or line left by something that has passed a sign or evidence of some past thing to follow or study out in detail or step by step
handprint /’han(d),print/ noun an impression of a hand on a surface traces of the individuals who contributed to an outcome
hannah / keywords
jimmy / keywords
ingenuity
building materials
university publications
Caroline O’Donnell, Dillon Pranger The Architecture of Waste 2020
Ryan Ludwig Beyond Sustainable: Architecture’s Evolving Environments of Habitation
2020
hannah / texts
Robin Wall Kimmerer Braiding Sweetgrass 2015 Bernard Rudofsky Architecture Without Architects 1964
Laurie Cluitmans On the Necessity of Gardening 2021
Keller Easterling Subtraction 2014
Jorge OteroPailos Experimental Preservation 2016
Anjulie Rao Design Education Needs a Dose of Radical Imagination 2023
Eyal Weizman Walking through Walls 2006
Shannon Mattern Maintenance and Care 2018
/ texts
sustainable materials
architects
Neri Oxman Designer Tom Hegen Photographer
SANAA Architects Chloé Zhao Director
Jun’ya Ishigami
Architect
Lacaton & Vassal
Architect
hannah / practices
Jorge OteroPailos
Luis Baragan Architect raumlabor Architect
Architect & Scholar
David Yasenchack Woodworker
/ practices
research
Our initial research consisted of indexing dams around the world. Studying each example allowed us to interrogate the historical, societal, and ecological contexts.
Dam at Aswan
6 Egypt began construction of the High Dam at Aswan in the 1950s to manage the Nile’s water flow, provide consistent irrigation for agriculture, and generate hydroelectric power.
6 Construction of the High Dam at Aswan led to flooding of Nubia, so Egyptian authorities relocated ancient artifacts before they were inundated.
6 Authorities removed the Temple of Dendur, which was erected in Nubia between 22 - 10 B.C. during the Roman Period.
6 Egypt offered the Temple of Dendur to the United States, which now displays it in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
6 Its unbuilding, relocation, and rebuilding sparks questions around cultural erasure and traces of a site and culture left behind.
Dam
6 Construction of the Ilisu Dam began in 2006 with the intention of generating clean energy and preserving water for irrigation.
6 Government officials advocated for the project as an economic generator that would also attract tourists to the reservoir.
6 Hasankeyf sat along the Tigris River, and historians speculate that the city dates back to 1800 B.C. The dam created a reservoir that flooded the ancient city.
6 Plans for the dam prompted outcry from preservationists and conservationists who argued that the damage to heritage and ecosystems was too great.
6 The Turkish government proposed moving 12 historic monuments to a “cultural park” before the city was flooded.
6 The government built a new version of Hasankeyf nearby where residents of historic Hasankeyf could move. Remnants of the historic Hasankeyf are still visible.
003 Grand Coulee Dam
Coulee Dam, WA, USA
6 The Bureau of Reclamation built the Grand Coulee Dam in 1942 to generate power and store irrigation water for communities in the Columbia River Basin.
6 The dam was monumental at the time of its construction for its scale, and it became emblematic of the public investments promised in the New Deal.
6 The Colville Reservation along the Columbia River fought the construction of the dam, as it would cause flooding of their land and disturb salmon populations.
6 Members of the Colville Reservation mourned the construction of the dam in a “Ceremony of Tears” that focused on the inundation of Kettle Falls.
6 The Grand Coulee Dam led to an erasure of the Colville’s sites and cultural practices.
6 The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) built the Norris Dam in 1936 to control flooding and create new sources of electricity.
6 The dam resulted in the flooding of Loyston, a community of nearly 100 residents that existed for over 100 years. Loyston included local infrastructure such as a mill, stores, churches, a post office, a grammar school, and a high school.
6 Loyston residents protested the Norris Dam’s construction because of a strong connection they felt to the land and the community they had built. One former resident explained that “the South is very land-oriented. When [the] TVA came in and flooded the land, it’s more than just taking the land and displacing the people. It’s basically obliterating the land, with the dam and the waters of the lake. People don’t even recognize that there was a Loyston.”
6 The town’s flooding prompted questions about what aspects of a community can and cannot be saved once it is physically erased.
Glen Canyon Dam
Coconino County, AZ, USA
6 The Bureau of Reclamation commissioned the Glen Canyon Dam in 1966 to better manage water supply in the Southwest and generate electricity.
6 The dam flooded tens of thousands of indigenous sites and burial grounds, with artifacts suggesting human presence on the land for 7,000 years.
6 Indigenous communities lived in harmony with the Colorado River before the US government took control of the water’s path and collection. The native population farmed on the land near the river and cared for the surrounding habitat. One member of the Navajo Nation explained that his community “pay[s] tribute to the landscape and the trees, the vegetation and every form of life. We respect them pretty much like human forms.”
6 The government failed to perform thorough archaeological research before construction, so previously unknown sites have appeared as the water recedes. However, the decades of inundation have deteriorated the remnants of the past.
Matilija Dam
6 The Ventura County Flood Control District built the Matilija Dam in 1947 as a method for preserving water and preventing flooding.
6 The dam became nonfunctional in the late 20th century due to extreme sediment build up and structural issues.
6 The Matilija Dam contributed to habitat degradation and a catastrophic decrease in the steelhead trout population.
6 Efforts to remove the dam are ongoing with a focus on sediment management.
6 It was established to provide water and hydroelectricity to the city of San Francisco.
6 The dam drowned the Hetch Hetchy Valley located in Yosemite National Park.
6 Efforts to remove the dam are ongoing with arguments to restore the valley and for more current sources of water and energy feeding into the city of San Francisco.
6 John Muir fought the implementation of the dam and died as construction was beginning.
Itaipu Dam
6 A hydroelectric dam located on the Paraná River between Brazil + Paraguay.
6 Contains 20 turbines which are able to produce 14,000 megawatts of electricity.
6 It is the third largest hydroelectric dam and 45th largest reservoir in the world.
6 The project totaled $19.6 billion (equivalent to $55.2 billion in 2024).
6 Construction of the dam was initially contested by Argentina, accusing Brazil of violating the waterways.
6 The dam inundated the world’s largest waterfall by volume, Guaira Falls. The falls were later liquidated by the Brazilian government.
Alto Lindoso Dam
Viana do Castelo District, Portugal
6 The Alto Lindoso Dam sits near the Spain-Portuguese border and generates hydroelectric power.
6 The reservoir created by the dam inundated five historic towns, including Acerdero, which relocated graves and a historic church.
6 Residents of the impacted towns protested the dam construction, which included a 10 day hunger strike.
6 The water levels have dropped in the reservoir due to drought, so the remnants of Acedoro have reappeared.
6 The ruins of the old city are both beautiful and a tragic reminder of the past.
Beaver Dam
6 The beaver dam was discovered via satellite imagery (seen from space), and it cannot be easily accessed by humans.
6 The dam is 775 meters wide with a total surface area of 70,000 square meters. It is the longest beaver dam in the world.
6 The dam’s scale and longevity suggest that multiple generations of beavers worked on this particular dam.
6 The dam collects the groundwater rather than a specific creek or river in the park.
Wood Buffalo National Park, Canada
Vilyuy Dam
6 The Russian government commissioned the Vilyuy Dam in 1967 to generate power for the nearby diamond mines.
6 The dam was one of the first structures built on permafrost, and it has the coldest operating conditions of any hydroelectric plant in the world.
6 Construction of the Vilyuy Dam led to a 10°F increase in the temperature of the river, and it displaced nearly 600 people.
Sakha Republic, Russia
Dam
6 The dam created Lake Burragorang. The reservoir is one of the largest domestic water supplies in the world.
6 It was created as a response to Sydney’s critically low water resource during WWI.
6 The dam flooded the Burragorang Valley, which was one of the Gundungurra traditional homelands.
6 There was a hydroelectric power station, yet water levels rarely reached levels high enough to justify maintaining this portion. It was discontinued in 2001.
013 Sankosh Temple-Dam
6 This hydroelectric dam which includes a temple is part of a larger 1,000 square kilometer development by the architectural firm BIG.
6 Described as a “man made cliff”, the landmark combines transportation infrastructure and civic facilities.
6 The step-well retaining wall allows for visitors to ascend and descend along thousand of individual routes. A visitor center and temple are nestled within the structure.
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Aswan High Dam.” Encyclopedia Britannica, October 24, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/topic/AswanHigh-Dam.
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Grand Coulee Dam Dam, Washington, United States.” n.d. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica. com/topic/Grand-Coulee-Dam.
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Lake Burragorang Wildlife, Recreation, Conservation | Britannica.” n.d. Www.britannica.com. Accessed January 15, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/place/Lake-Burragorang#ref28201.
Bureau of Reclamation. 2019. “Glen Canyon Dam | Upper Colorado Region | Bureau of Reclamation.” 2019. https://www.usbr.gov/uc/rm/crsp/gc/.
Crate, Susan. 2002. “Co-Option in Siberia: The Case of Diamonds and the Vilyuy Sakha.” Polar Geography 26 (4).
Hartlaub, Peter. 2023. “Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Was a San Francisco Miracle. It Was Also a Curse.” San Francisco Chronicle. May 21, 2023. https:// www.sfchronicle.com/oursf/article/hetch-hetchy-reservoir-san-francisco-miracle-18105507.php.
Hockenos, Paul. 2019. “Turkey’s Dam-Building Spree Continues, at Steep Ecological Cost.” Yale E360. October 3, 2019. https://e360.yale.edu/features/ turkeys-dam-building-spree-continues-at-steep-ecological-cost.
Latour, Bruno. We Have Never Been Modern. Translated by Catherine Porter. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993.
“National Inventory of Dams.” n.d. Nid.sec.usace.army.mil. https://nid.sec.usace.army.mil/#/.
Parks Canada Agency, Government of Canada. 2022. “World’s Largest Beaver Dam.” Www.pc.gc.ca. November 25, 2022. https://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/nt/ woodbuffalo/nature/beaver_gallery.
Podmore, Zak. 2022. “Cultural Sites Are Being Revealed by a Dwindling Lake Powell.” The Salt Lake Tribune. October 24, 2022. https://www.sltrib. com/news/2022/10/24/cultural-sites-are-being/.
Ravenscroft, Tom. 2023. “BIG Unveils Gelephu’s ‘Mindfulness City’: Bridging Bhutan’s Heritage and Future.” ArchDaily. December 21, 2023. https:// www.archdaily.com/1011445/big-unveils-gelephus-mindfulness-city-bridging-bhutans-heritage-and-future.
Taylor, Alan. 2020. “Photos: An Ancient Town Submerged—Hasankeyf Underwater - the Atlantic.” Www.theatlantic.com. October 20, 2020. https:// www.theatlantic.com/photo/2020/10/photos-an-ancient-town-submerged-hasankeyf-underwater/616562/.
Tennessee Valley Authority. n.d. “Norris.” Accessed January 14, 2024. https://www.tva.com/energy/our-power-system/hydroelectric/norris.
Washington Secretary of State. n.d. “Grand Coulee to Grunge - Grand Coulee.” Www.sos.wa.gov. Accessed January 14, 2024. https://apps.sos.wa.gov/ legacy/coulee-to-grunge/grand-coulee.aspx.
2019. Matilija Dam Ecosystem Restoration Project. May 7, 2019. https://matilijadam.org/.
2020. Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam. November 20, 2020. https://www.gihub.org/connectivity-across-borders/case-studies/itaipu-hydroelectric-dam/.
Aerial View of Norris Dam and Lake. 2023, Giclee Fine Art Print, Anderson/Campbell County, TN.
Aerial View of Norris Dam. 1935, Associated Press, Anderson/Campbell County, TN.
Beaver Dam. 2022, Stims Foundation, Wood Buffalo National Park, Canada.
Clements, Rell. Norris Dam. 1937, Anderson/Campbell County, TN.
Colville Indians fishing at Kettle Falls. undated, University of Washington Special Collections, Kettle Falls, WA.
Construction of the Itaipu Dam. 1982, Private Individual’s Photograph Collection, Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.
Crampton, Gregory. Glen Canyon Dam Construction. 1961, J Williard Marriott Special Collections Library, University of Utah, Coconino County, Arizona.
Gerster, George. Untitled (Temple of Dendur).
Grand Coulee Dam Aerial View. 1955, Big Bend Railroad, Grant/Okanogan County, WA.
Hetch Hetchy with waterfalls before reservoir. 1909, U.S. National Park Service, Toulumne County, CA.
Horner. MATILIJA DAM on Thursday afternoon. Ojai Valley News, Ventura County, CA.
Ilisu Dam. 2018, University of Virginia, Turkey.
Itaipu Dam. 2022, Global Energy, Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.
Kara, Burak. Aerial Photo of Hasankeyf Before Flooding. 2019, Getty, Hasankeyf, Turkey.
Kilic, Bulent. Aerial Photo of Hasankeyf After Flooding. 2020, Getty, Hasankeyf, Turkey.
Lake Powell behind the Glen Canyon Dam. 2023, Audubon.org, Coconino County, Arizona.
M. da Silva Pedro. Alto Lindoso Dam. 2019, Structurae, Ponte da Barca, Viana do Castelo District, Portugal.
Matilija Dam. 2016, Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project, Ventura County, CA.
Matilija Dam. Research Library at The Museum of Ventura County, Ventura County, CA.
McKinnon, J.D. Beaver Dam. 2019, Parks Canada, Wood Buffalo National Park, Canada. NASA satellite image of the Nile, Aswan High Dam, and Lake Nasser 2001, NASA.
O’Shaughnessy Dam and the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir 1923, San Francisco Chronicle, Toulumne County, CA.
O’Shaughnessy Dam. 1934, San Francisco Public Library, Toulumne County, CA.
Partially constructed Warragamba Dam in 1957. Sate Library of NSW, Warragamba, Australia.
The beaver dam as viewed from a helicopter. 2017, Parks Canada, Wood Buffalo National Park, Canada.
The Construction of the Itaipu Dam. 1981, Itaipu Binacional - Paraguay, Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.
View of the Temple of Dendur on the Nile. 1961-1962, Center of Documentation of Egyptian Antiquities, Nubia, Egypt.
Vilyuy Dam and Reservoir. megaconstrucciones.net, Vilyuy, Russia.
Vorrath, Sophie. Alto Lindoso Dam. 2018, Renew Economy, Ponte da Barca, Viana do Castelo District, Portugal.
Warragamba Dam. 2022, We Build Value Digital Magazine, Warragamba, Australia.
Webb, Robert. Glen Canyon Dam site on the Colorado River. 1992, USGS, Coconino County, AZ.
PROJECT ONE
PROJECT
With the assigned duplication action of “entangle” I sought out to find a piece of artwork connected to the landscape. One which I could peel apart layers and entangle within itself. I chose “Woldgate Vista” by David Hockney, 2015. As producers and creators I want to better understand the relationship we have with the landscape. How to be intentional with our material selection. Working in tangent with our limited resources, not fighting against it.
This exercise examines a coal mine in Scranton, PA that faces the risk of closure in the modern era. With the verb “to hollow,” I emphasized and created empty spaces and voids in the images. The interventions I took in the image prompt conversations around past situations at the mine and potential futures for the site.
PROJECT TWO
HANNAH + FANGTIAN
PROJECT
By means of the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk and the duplicating actions of ‘entangle’ and ‘crash’ we unfolded a critique of consumption and scarcity. Starting with the overarching topic of ‘consumerism’ we analyzed our own profession. As architects, our designs are linked to the growing excess waste produced from construction. Annual construction waste is expected to reach 2.2 billion tons globally by 2025. Within the US C&D waste increased by 342% from 1990 to 2018 and upwards of 30% of building material sent to a site ends up as waste. Much of which is housed in landfills, unable to break down and decompose. Our image materializes the beanstalk from the excess waste found around Taubman. Calling attention to these discarded materials. As designers, we should be critical with material selection and configuration of our designs. Utilizing and investigating materials with continuous or regenerative life-cycles, low carbon footprints and recognizing that materials are limited. Over consumption or extraction will inevitably lead to scarcity.
This exercise was completed alongside Mostafa Salama and takes inspiration from The Little Match Girl, a tragic fairytale about a young girl who dies trying to sell matches on the streets. Using the action of “to hollow” from my past exercise and Mostafa’s action of “to merge,” we created two alternate worlds in the form of a lenticular. In one world, the mine appears frozen and desolate, reminiscent of the little girl’s cold reality in the story. In the other world, the mine appears to be engulfed in flames, which represent the little girl’s hallucinations before her death.
