COLLECTOR’S CONTRIVE

Whitestone was first established as a fire lookout camp in 1922, then an L-4 ground house was built in 1935 by the CCC for an approximate cost of about $900. By 1960, the cabin was in very poor shape due to age, weathering, and shifting of the rocks upon which the foundation was built.

A new lookout was proposed and a 20′ tower with R-6 cab replaced the L-4 in 1964. In 1985, a third structure was built on the summit, the existing 53′ steel tower with live-in cab. It remains staffed every summer.

While the intervention of maintenance plays a role in longevity, materiality itself marks a relationship with landscape. Material Ecology is an emerging field in design denoting informed relations between products, buildings, systems, and their environment.

I Kanisku National Park, Washington I

Carving A Clearing

Deep in the heart of a dense and sprawling forest, nestled amidst a thick grove of trees stands a structure, serving an important purpose. The structure, growing in its surroundings, becoming the sum of its parts as it materializes from the forest, designed to support the process of thinning the surrounding woods. As the seasons change and the trees grow, they would often become overcrowded and compete for resources like water and sunlight. This could cause some trees to become stunted or unhealthy, and could even increase the risk of forest fires.

Whitestone Ridge I

To prevent these problems, the foresters who manage the woods would periodically thin the trees, carefully removing selected ones to create more space and light for the others. The facility is the central hub for this process. Inside lies a series of interventions within the structure, providing programmatic spaces of operation. A gathering space, where the foresters convene to plan their strategy and review their progress. A loading station connecting to a ban-saw for dimensional cutting and assembling.

Looking to longevity, what is its role and what is the value we place on this term? In what regard does this constitute the manufacturing and decision of materials? By nature, and in its rite, the material practice of craft is informed by matter, its method of fabrication, and by the environment. Ironically, the resources we use pull from the Earth, but often designed to outlive and withstand the timeline of elements in nature. But could there be a balance between vitality and a yield to nature, allowing for a seamless integration into a place, allowing for the environment to lay claim or make architecture its home? While the intervention of maintenance plays a role in longevity, materiality itself marks a relationship with landscape. Material Ecology is an emerging field in design denoting informed relations between products, buildings, systems, and their environment. As the collector’s contrive extends, so does the programmatic insertion for gather. Lumber hoisted, cut, dropped and removed for an adapting structure, a living machine in the forest.

Through the logging process, in the aftermath of soaking the lumber for cutting, the rough cuts are hoisted up through pulley cables. This system serves two functions; for the foresters, it creates a wall on the second level circulation as protection from the elements while providing the lumber to dry and prevent pests and rotting to occur on the forest floor.

The cable tower serves a duel purpose for the collector. Along with transporting materials and passengers between the lookout and storage facility, a water tank hinges on the structure. Connecting to a sensor, the detector triggers in response to smoke, engaging the irrigation system for fire suppression, while providing a respite for the wanderer as a refill station. This segment conclusively remains open ended as to facilitate a conversation on intervention in nature. What degree to we go to be preventative, do we commodify and establish place beyond what’s existing? As the Collector’s Contrive grows, as does the lookout tower, becoming a symbiotic sprawl through the forest floor.