Type. Extension of a protected structure
Status. Planning
Location. Co.Dublin
Description: A two-storey extension and wing to the rear of the existing cottage. The proposed extension consists of living spaces at ground floor level and bedroom with WC at first floor level.
Type. Curation of International Exhibition
Status. February 2022, Solstice Arts Centre - September 2022, Tallinn
Location. Ireland & Estonia
CURATORS - Alder Architects, Dublin (St John Walsh) and b210 Architects, Tallinn (Aet Ader, Helmi Marie Langsepp and Mari Möldre).
EXHIBITION DESIGN - Roji
GRAPHIC DESIGN -StuudioStuudio
PARTICIPATING OFFICES - Hannigan Cooke Architects, Joseph Mackey Architects, OGU Architects, Robert Bourke Architects, Wrkshop Architects (Ireland) Creatomus Solutions, Paco Ulman & Kaja Pae, Peeter Pere Architects, Ruumiringlus, Studio Kuidas (Estonia).
ORGANISERS - Estonian Association of Architects (EAA), Estonian Centre for Architecture (ECA), Irish Architecture Foundation (IAF)
Wood Works Exchange Boxes ©AislingMcCoy
‘De Oratorio’, Joseph Mackey Architects, ©Aisling McCoy
‘Butterfly Building’, Robert Bourke and ‘Carbon configurations’, Creatomus ©Aisling McCoy
Wood Works Exchange Boxes ©AislingMcCoy
Focussing on the characteristics of wood, the exhibition explored the act of transformation across the life cycle of the material. The theme chosen by the curators aimed to frame this process; from extraction to transportation, standardisation to encapsulation and eventual disassembly for potential reuse.
In seeking out the unique traits of timber, the aim was to question how industry and construction can learn from and be shaped by the materials inherent qualities. Whether a building site is next to a forest or not, timber used in construction has been subjected to an industrial decision-making process that dictates its final physical properties. In this act of translation, where wood is often treated similarly to other inanimate materials, a tree's uniqueness is sacrificed for transportability, structural consistency and usability.
Our process of investigation began with the pairing of Irish and Estonian practices located some 3000km apart; a collaboration involving its own acts of translation and logistics. Following a series of lectures by architects, industry, academics and thinkers, each pair were provided with a timber shipping box to initiate a dialogue. This was an invitation from the curators to change cadence from the immediacy of modern communication to a potentially more considered exchange of ideas in physical form.
The response of the paired practices to the curatorial brief and process has taken the form of eight exhibits.