I think I said this once before and I think I'll say it again.

I'd rather be sifting.

hello London. ....and the photo stream

"where's my chinese food ed? i'm lonely and you don't know how to parallel park"

how much wheat can i grow in one year?
how much wheat can be produced on 1 acre? how much wheat can be produced on a land parcel in the city...of detroit?
how much can i sell a pound of wheat for?

...wait.

what tools do i need to harvest wheat?
water.
soil condition? lead? contaminants? re-soil?
how much would that cost?
i need a tilling machine.
i need seeds.
i need a shovel.
when do i plant?
when do i harvest?
when do i water?

i still need a hollander.
i still need boilers, can i use just fire?
need to develop presses/molds.

will this keep me busy year long?

how long will it take for wheat to grow?

...give me one more year.

people that know how to take care of themselves means that there's one less person to worry about.

some of these pics are of the 27th st project i'm working on. it's adjacent to the highline and will be on display at the arch league (courtesy of Corey Hoelker of FLAnk.) FLAnk's future office will be here as well, and that's our rooftop terrace. The high line is going to be nice! i can't wait to see it happen. doZer and I will have another place to walk soon!

on the flipside, not much is new here. just doing construction administrative work for IDP and a lot of drafting. IDP, for those of you that do not know is an Internship Development Program instituted to junior architects that must be fulfilled prior the architecture licensure process. I've been doing some design on the side of all of this, but mostly it's all boring work. i think, most of it is tremendously boring and tedious. especially the construction admin work. shuffling paper's not my deal. making it is.

it's been called to my attention of a residency at a paper mill/studio/gallery near my 'hood.

the anticipation and anxiety for this is building up. it's almost time to get back to my labor of love, if all will fall in place in the next few months.



HAPPY BIRTHDAY doZer!!!!!!

zzzzzZZZZZZZZzzzzzz.....zzzzzzzZZZZZZZZzzzzzz

doZer!!

happy festivus!!!

aaaahhhhhh, photo credits - (correction) robert eric stimmel.

curbed

i love the public! . . . sort of. maybe.

57th street

by FLAnk

i'm so frickn' scared of heights. that's rediculous. i guess that's how the city was built.

hell yeah, back in detroit. GO TIGERS!!!

feels good to be at home. it's much cleaner, believe it or not, than the city. reasons for why i'm in love with the suburbs, nowadays.

1. everywhere i walk, it doesn't smell like urine.
2. it doesn't take an hour to travel a mile.
3. space is cheaper.
4. people are nicer.
5. more honost people in the 'burbs.
6. grocery shopping doesn't take half a day.
7. not as many beggers.
8. when i talk to people, it doesn't feel like i'm getting ripped off or taken advantage of.
9. family
10. the doZer.

D. Vermeleun: "ED, GET BACK TO WORK!"

e. liang: "WHAT!...architecture goes good with beer."

son of a b!tch!! gimme some publicity already. . . i'll never forget the last words of my time at cranbrook. "im afraid your work isn't public enough." give me a break. screw the public, it's making me more selfish. so, this is strike two. . .

i was thinking of proposing something for a project at emanate.org, but pro-bono work just wouldn't cut it for my situation right now. galleries in chelsea are cheezy to me, so i guess it's time to venture into something new.


"Dear Architecture and the Mail participant:

Several months ago we wrote to you to inform you that your project
was selected for inclusion in the Architectural League's project,
Architecture and the Mail.

I am writing now, with great regret, to tell you that we have had to
cancel the project. After much effort over the past several months
to work with the submissions we received, we determined that we did
not have a critical mass of material that would allow us to realize
the project in a way that would honor its original intention. This
has been extremely disappointing for us, as we're sure it is for you.

Thank you for your interest in and support of this project and we
appreciate your patience over the past several months.

Sincerely,

Rosalie Genevro
Executive Director, The Architectural League

Hunter Tura and Jeannie Kim,
Project Organizers"

250 Bowery

. . . so here's what i'm currently investing most of my time on these days. CD's for a hotel on "the bowery." the renderings are by corey hoelker of FLAnk Architects. the facade is by Front Inc. it has a metal corten perforated screen and will rust over time. there will be an extensive green roof, and a vertical screen for ivy to grow vertically to provide shade on the west facade of the building. It is currently proposing a geothermal system (largest in nyc) and seeking LEED gold. CD's are scheduled to be finished mid-october. there's a lot of recycled material that will be used within the high end residential building. old timber from the previous buildings will be used in the lobby, stairways, bar, and club. there will be an art gallery on the bowery as well. it'll be the new hotness on the bowery amongst all the she she lounges in the lower east side.

...don't ask how i get from one place to another. sometimes i wonder for myself. going from the suburbs to a city, from building a strawbale house to a high end hotel. from going to school to downright practice and profession. i'm waiting for what's next and i'm somewhat anxious to find out.

work is so un-inspiring. i'd rather be sifting.

"Dear Edmund:

We appreciate your interest in exhibiting your work in this year's DaimlerChrysler Financial Services/Cranbrook Academy of Art exhibit. Unfortunately, since the choices were made, there have been budget cuts and a few pieces had to be eliminated from the show due to framing/pedestal/plexi cover costs.

Unfortunately, your piece was one of the ones eliminated. We will make arrangements to have it returned to you as soon as possible.

Please verify the address these will be returned to is:

xxxxx Lightsxxx
Novi, MI xxxxx

We hope you understand and we wish you luck in the future with your art."

oh well. . . it was a great oppurtunity, but i shall soon have it in ny! i can't wait to see it and be with it again! . . .my reservations for corp america haven't changed :( doh!

FLAnk

architecture studio in chelsea. this is where i am now. . .i miss detroit and the farms. i remember there was a project by a colleague of ours titled "far from the farm." how true it is.

So, I'm cross-pollinating out in nyc for a while, a long while. this past sat. i attended the icff.
co-lab's paper was represented at
material connexion's booth. nice to see some detroit representation!
i briefly met an artist doing some sililar stuff to my work for acoustical treatment.
some cool paper work here - www.molodesign.com
and maplexmaterial.com
†
ecroresin - polymer stuff. like crushed chopped pastic from bottles and stuff that was compressed into like a waxy substance. i like it.

www.dformdesign.com - punched patterns/furniture


carriaghousepaper is in brooklyn, i think williamsburg. i shall pay a visit.

"Today's mighty oak is yesterday's nut that held its ground"

confucious told me this off taft road while i was driving home today.

how dirty is your community?
-scorecard.org provides statistics according to how polluted your city is.

study of pressure treated lumber as a "bio-hazard" on playgrounds. gov research article.

MOMA: S.A.F.E.

perhaps the cranbrook arch studio should invest in some of these. . .

"seed card" identity

note to self before bed: i'd consider my thesis facilitated through trial and error with a voice. somewhat auto-didactic. as far as pronouncing to a greater social realm of "things" (being public), to me architecture plays a small role and should play a small role. a harmonious relationship toward practicing architecture and experiencing architecture is ideal.

i attended my undergrad school, udmercy, for an alumni event and things have changed. students' work is different, program's growing, and the actual architecture building is shaping up. it was good to see. i was impressed to see a project planned by students and the dcdc of a house that will be built in a neighborhood this summer. a special house, built from an abandoned one from chicago. the schematic drawings were impressive.

those were the good old days. . .

for other news - my work's going over to daimler chrysler services' headquarters over in farmington hills. i'm pretty excited about this. i've never had work taken away from me in an instant. oh well, if a thesis can't write itself - other things will. it feels good to part away with something i've been attached to for too long. i guess, i'll set it into the ground whenever the work gets back to me - or, i should say if it does. but that doesn't break a promise, in fact it makes a promise stronger. promises are somewhat time facilitated, i think? correct me, i'm not good with relationships.

for fun, somebody please tell me what's wrong with these pictures as a whole.





to me, they spell - a problem of health, a problem of economy, a problem of complacency, a problem of efficiency, a problem of politics, a problem of living, a problem of consumption, a problem of . . . etc.

so, now that stuff's in - and pretty much my time at cranbrook is coming to an end. . . things are moving fairly quickly for me. maybe a little too quick. it actually feels really good to be done, now i can get back to. . . eh, life - with a stronger perception.

i guess this will be my last post for cranbrook days. but i'll still be around to post things, i have changed this blog to my personal one as of. . . now. beginning. . . now.

cheers! ed.

it was a very exciting day today! i got my arch into the gallery space - special thanks to mike flynn, john cline, patrick casey, bill massie, and paul puzzello.

. . . the longest walk up lone pine road got me into my designated space to span.

things are so much cooler with wheels for some reason

model: courtesy of brian oltrogge, massie arch

time to move on -> i can't sleep, i'm having anxiety for graduatation - so i guess i'll write it off.

this past two years has been everything but trivial. it's been a trial of balancing philosophies to carry thru a train of thought to practice. it's been time wasted and time gained. exposure to new things and things i just hate. hardly establishing a solid ground for my first year, i was forced to engage a topic based on relative experience and emotional fuel based on personal yet relational to context and the city. a politic was developed based on pollution. an importance of accountability has been learned as a young architect. to establish a solid ground, i figure i ought to know where i'm stepping as well. . .

it was difficult for me to blend peripheral agendas outside Architecture, transmitted to me thru the academy as well as discourse within our studio. bringing forth of learnt and developing agendas was a huge challenge to surface with Architecture. manifested in this thought practice, believe it or not, addresses many - "ism's and -ist's."

i came to cranbrook expecting to develop my train of thought. practicing a train of thought, i felt, came from thinking and making - criticalness, precision, social engagement, and enjoyment. to write a thesis is to be qualitative and quantitative. i would much prefer it to be an auto-biography, but i guess cranbrook puts thesis in quotes.

note to self: ellipsoidal lamella barrel vault.

. . . the current state of things - no matter how hard i'll try to use "safe" materials, one has to make compromises to satisfy a larger social dialogue. i had to wrap two bales with celophane that i brought to the science museum's freezer to sterilize them of any microscopic living organisms that could endanger art within the museum gallery. these bales will serve the purpose for sitting on and understanding the tactile quality of what i'm making within my installation. the pressing continues. . .

in one week - i will be contructing an apparatus that will vault the surface to be wheeled to the museum gallery for the opening on the 23rd.

ground zero
a breaking ground
a solid ground
a common ground
a fertile ground
coffee grounds
a fixed ground
a breeding ground
ground to become sharp
the ground round
the vital ground
shifting ground
open ground
crossing ground
a groundwork

a monument to my way of practice will be grounded for my thesis/degree show. it'll be a metaphor demonstrated in two parts. a vault taken down and dug into the ground at the end of its duration in the gallery. this activity will demonstrate an anology of permanence and health that addresses material construct and my intention of developing a material that is non-hazardous as it degenerates.

googled : "agritecture"

i have added a small slide show of paul and ed's recent trip to winnipeg. the trip was an inspirational one. our warmest (no pun intended) thank you goes out to Nada Subotincic and Mark West for their hospitality and generosity of time.

i have also added some links. . . check them out!

pine tar
thanks for the suggestion nada!

nice - wait until everyone sees and hears the new blender i'm borrowing. it's an industry commercialized blender capable of blending large quantities. when i was in manitoba, my dad managed to get it from his friend that made tofu for a living on the side of being an engineer at fomoco. my dad's awesome, i came home one day dejected after breaking bill's blender and even our own. he went out of his way to pick this one up! it totally made my day!! i can't wait to give it a whirl.

this thing is massive.

nothing feels better than good old fashion labor.

the first pass

so i've done some site maintainance. . . please visit my archives. i feel i should be doing some acknowledgements since i haven't done so yet because i'm entering into a "production mode." it's a fairly laborous process so i don't want to forget the people that got me where i am in my work. these are the people who have helped me clarify my intentions and roles that bring purpose and meaning toward my approach to architecture.

some acknowledgements:

mom + dad + doZer
Deanne Bednar (strawbale studio)
Ray Tyrell (local farmer)
Jane Lackey (fibers studio)
Gloria J. Lowe (Detroit rehabilitator)
Paul Puzzello (crandroid)

lastly, the really critical (sometimes cynical) architecture colleagues from UDMercy who have challenged, encouraged, discouraged, and frustrated me for good reason.

graig donnelly
matt gerard
tadd heidgerken
manuel garza
andy sturm
andrew lehman

Automation continues. . .

so i've limited the amount of stuff i can put on my blog. i didn't realize how slow it loaded until after seeing mikolaj try to load my page. it was slow because of the number of images. . . please check out my archives. my goal of 15*40=x bricks in 30 is appearing real, i'll post the final proj. on the opening of the academy's degree show. for now, i'm signing off. . . it's been fun. feel free to email me with questions/concerns. go make some paper!

some acknowledgements:

mom + dad + doZer
Deanne Bednar (strawbale studio)
Ray Tyrell (local farmer)
Jane Lackey (fibers studio)
Gloria J. Lowe (Detroit rehabilitator)

lastly, the really critical (sometimes cynical) architecture colleagues from UDMercy who have challenged, encouraged, discouraged, and frustrated me for good reason.

graig donnelly
matt gerard
tadd heidgerken
manuel garza
andy sturm
andrew lehman

Ed

hopefully i can inspire a conversation. . . the challenges of making a viable economic healthy material is difficult. concrete is alkalinic and eats away at virgin nat'l material easily. plaster as well. however, kaolin (kaolinite) clay - pure calcium carbonate, could possibly work since it's a natural mineral. this is used often in conjunction with straw bale housing. however, the economic cost of it is high. it is also complicated to work with to get the right ingredients of kaolin to adhere to the fibers too, as experienced this past summer. although, it's really water proof after it cures. . .

buckeye ultrafiber has patented a coating to their virgin fibers to make them alkaline resistant. i'm wondering if it's just oil.

cob. i don't know why i just don't use mud to seal up these units. . . i can't get over its aesthetic at all.

raw. why not? it can be utilized in interior purposes, but some people are allergic to straw. i think i'm going to start going synthetic. . . but, i think it's twice as difficult to break down in the amount of time i have left.

the possibility of a plywood sandwich sounds promising for building a really cheap sturdy wall. it suits a wall acoustically, possibly with a good r value, and can be thin. although, any microbrial attack can be detrimental.

anyhow, i'm open to suggestions. my next step is certainly to quantify this process. i feel i have somewhat completed the qualitative part of this thesis.

. . . and graduation awaits after 23 years of school, i feel i can retire now. . .i'm going to disney world once i get out.

finally, something "free-standing"

girth

this is the amount of waste after cutting (2) entire sheets of 4'x8' birch ply. my goal was to use the the most amount of usable effective material for my molds. could i perhaps chop this up more and utilize it in my mix?

Agenda:

Accountability as an architect and a responsibility in terms of decomposition of materials that are potential sources of pollution is my concern (i.e.: decomposing houses in Detroit that are continuously polluting). An economical approach toward healthy, durable, sustainable building materials is my goal.

My work is a reaction stimulated by the degenerate city of Detroit, a sprawling redundancy of metropolitan suburbs, and local farms threatened by it. My concern is to sustain these struggling contexts (the city and farms) through the manifestation of a healthy building material provided by agricultural residue. It is capable of satisfying the economy of local farms in need of help and provide a healthy built environment the city needs. Fibers from wheat, rye, and oat are economical resources that are capable of being processed into a building material besides a bale itself. Equally as important as the manifested material is the process of producing it. With the aid of technology, processing of agricultural residue is not wasteful and most importantly non-hazardous to the environment. Contributing toward the ethical approach toward sustainability, a CNC laser cutter was utilized for manufacturing tools required to manipulate the agricultural residue. Technology contributes and makes sustainability easier to practice.

the idea here is to establish a tolerance. 1/32". when working in unison, the hex's will be stronger under compression. it was, again, pressed at 1/5th the actual desired size for testing purposes. i am concentrating on lessening the amount of material to press this geometry. it will lead toward a shorter drying time and an economical amount.

. . . so here's my new process, thankfully i have a place to press (outside) where i don't have to clean up after myself. don't worry, it's all just water and straw. . . it's healthy for the soil underneath the grating. below is my new block and process. pico was put to good use. soon pico and paco will be combined to press a larger object. this was just a test, a test to see if i can press fine detailed corners with these fibers to make the blocks "lock" to each other. this test was conducted 1/3 the size of what the actual block will be. it worked well.

pico and paco

. . . this is my new press that i just finished fabricating today. i shall post pics of my new blocks soon.

i have found very many interesting stuff in regards to building technology at the "world of concrete." ultrafiber is one that i'm particularly interested in. they come in bags, about 1/4" thick squares of synthetic polymer. when they are hydropulped - fibers are created to make a cellulose composition with concrete that makes it stronger. i talked to these guys and they were very interesting.

i also talked to the vp of nycon. i had a great conversation with him in regards to a natural fiber (AC217 Conc.w/virgin cellulose fibers) vs. a synthetic fiber (AC32 Conc.w/synthetic fibers) to make concrete stronger. he's done tests on numerous fibers and found that natural fibers break down faster due to the alkalinity of concrete, therefore making the concrete weaker over an extended period of time. they are mass producers of fiberglass and metal fibers for concrete. . . i'm wondering if there is a process of preserving straw fibers so they won't react too fast with concrete. . . or vice versa - is there a concrete (or other material) that is not alkalinic to break natural plant fibers down that is capable of holding a capacity for building - economically?

i couldn't find much on "gunite" or "shotcrete". . . although, i found very many cool expensive machines that are capable of doing it.

the hoover dam was awesome. i should have pics of it up on my blog soon.

so, i'm trying to find a new dialogue with this material - perhaps concrete, as suggested by bill and matt. a few of us are headed to las vegas for the "world of concrete." hence, the concrete coated hexagons. i'm particularly interested in shotcrete/gunite and hope to learn more about this process at the "world of concrete." currently, i'm designing a press for my "new mold" so i can process blocks faster than before. this semester's going to be frantic.

"new mold"

concrete covered straw hex's

"new work space"

anyone know the difference of finishes for permanance purposes between
shellac vs. soy extract vs. flaxseed oil vs. plaster vs. kaolin clay (calcium carbonate)?

MIKOLAJ!!!!!!!!

. . . it's the final countdown. 2 wks. and counting.

what i'd like for christmas.

1 wheat bale.
1 vita mix blender to mix drinks and/or pulp.
1 gigantic propane burner
1 10 gallon pot
a few lbs. of sodium carbonate
a bigger press rather than my car's
a drill
heat lamps
proper shelving
a la"z"er cutter
new socks and pants, perhaps a (yellow) jumpsuit
skis
a pressing stand
birch

and for my stocking stuffer:

i'd like a braun electric toof brush.

merry christmas!

the Code of Hammurabi specified a death penalty for builders, or masons, whose buildings fell on the inhabitants. (wikipedia)

If a poorly built house causes the death of a son of the owner of the house, then the son of the builder is put to death. (Sect. 230)

if this was the case in detroit, i don't think an architect would be alive or practicing today.

i think my research has to go deeper into something else besides the surface fabric of detroit. i'm currently seeking paper guilds and researching "warraqeens."

i want to take an elective in print-making next semester.

my convivial tool, or, my afro pik. . .

automation:

i think i've found what's most appropriate for what i'm doing! it could be a delicatessen for horses!

tangents:

making paper for a lazer cutter that produces a lot of waste is an issue i see. if i produce my own paper, i can limit this waste from a waste product (agricultural residue) for making stuff. re-animating (bill's suggestion) and re-making as a process in conjunction with the cnc-machines is cost effective. it's also healthy.

lazer's like natural material. it cuts easier. it does not emit toxic fumes besides, carbon - as opposed to formaldehyde which is often used in plywood.

alchemy - i like the qualities of this material. it is light, strong, easy to produce, looks nice, and is cheap. with all this leftover cardboard from students using the lazer, i want to recycle it into a pulp in combination with my straw fibers. why not?

leaves - there are a lot of dead leaves blowing around here, what if i chopped them up and used them as a fiborous material to make another material? with straw?

ouch. i think i bruised my shin after trying to stack two blocks on it.

edit: after analyzing my pic - i know where the hex failed. it failed where i drilled the hole for the nut and bolt that i took out. specifically in the middle of the side of the hex. i'm still wondering if it would be capable of holding two cinder blocks. we'll see. . .

Sketch II
99% natural. ingredients:
water
abaca
nuts and bolts - taken out
straw fiber - 290Oz. roughly 36 cups. w/water pressed out. a tiny fraction of a bale.
sodium carbonate
jute - soon to be rendered out
time
weight: less than 1 lbs

things i'm currently thinking about - juxtaposition and appropriation of a "form" developed from material and context of local environments and surroundings. edit: after today's 'critcial studies' lecture - definitely "alchemy."

sketch I

... back to reality, or shall i say ideology?

finally it's go time! two days after my crit, i finally got my abaca!!

anyhow, i feel the need to clear things up after my crit - in relationship to what i've learned of the context of detroit, specifically of pollution resulting of blight (1950's homes) and the process of building with products unknown to cause harm at the time - i have elected (as an architect) to hold accountability of knowing what is being built. Starting with a material process, i'm capable of knowing what the "ingredients" are in a process, know how much waste is developed through the process, and know what is potentially harmful (fire, water, etc. . .) and address them in any way i can.

my ideology with the suburban sprawl and the economic stress of the city and farm is impossible to solve with architecture. i see my work as a mediation. the potential utilization of leftover farm products as a healthy material for building is a thesis inspired from my personal reasons of my family having cancer and the un-justice of pollution of urban blight plaguing a city in economic distress. i wanted to discuss this in my crit, but it's my fault i didn't make it clear. this is the "why" and the reason/purpose - so beyond the "why," i'm moving into the "how" . . .

consuming material - is not knowing to me. processing and making it 1st hand is knowing and a responsibility i value. it is my interest to see this material and process it to its ultimate potential in regards to design/making.

finally, the art of digital fabrication meets the art of natural processing. it sort of smells like bacon.

a solid wafer.

the recipe. . .

i'm making straw paper. note, i'm in "chop" mode. i've got my sodium carbonate, i'm soaking both the straw fibers and the abaca.

so, i've learned a lot from participating in Detroit's bioneers. i learned how to make a strong rope from milkweed.

i have a book called plant fibers for papermaking and it describes a bunch of plants used for papermaking besides straw. basically, my goal is to make some paper for now, but who knows - it can become a structural paper. we'll see. for now, i'm going to get some indian hemp from a farm. . . or, i think deanne might have some.

test I

so, i had to get rid of the fruit flies in my studio. after a week, i have attempted to release the cast and see what i can find. all i got was, broken pieces, mushy straw, rotten foul smelling straw, and a lot of flies. it was gross. this calls for a new recipe. thinner casts, maybe about 1/2" that will allow it to dry faster, layered to give structure, and the combo of abaca and boiling the straw w/sodim carbonate, so it won't be so starchy. wheat paste was horrible, it stinks, takes a lot of time to dry, and it attracts flies. my hands smell like garbage as i type this.

i'm determined to get this right.

10.14

i just briefly stopped by detroit today at the bioneers and had a chance to finally meet greg and vibeke. they are architects/designers of co-lab* in detroit from cranbrook during peter's years. i was happy to find a paper they developed made from sun-flowers, straw, and i think other natural combinations pressed and screened.

on 10.15 i will be at the general lecture hall at wayne state university (BIONEERS). i will be holding an intro of the importance of natural building within the detroit metro area as well as holding workshops with deanne bednar and amber baker.

#150 = the general lecture hall at WSU.

10.12

a rendered image of what i might design. . .

10.12
learning from detroit and the surrounding areas of blight - i have made a promise to myself to build healthier.

blight in the city

blight out at suburbia's ebb. this is where suburbia will soon take over.

straw. . . i love straw. it is very healthy, economical, easy to work with, and fun to play with. after working at the strawbale studio with deanne bednar this summer - i want to extend my investigations with straw fiber. i feel in tune working with local natural materials. to help strenghten my investigations i decided to take on a fibers elective. it's weird and awkward for me and so far i think the relationship between architecture and fibers is pretty weak, but we'll see what comes of it - i guess it's up to me. for me, at least, aesthetics is not important.

why straw? it is waste from farms. it is used to feed pigs and horses. it is a fast renewable resource replenishing every season versus wood. it is natural. most of all it is very healthy and very economical. on the larger scale of things, the typical farm west of novi, mi is struggling to survive. implementation of this material in building could possibly be another source of income for these farms and perhaps could be a remedy for blight. in theory, blight has happened mainly because of unstable economy that failed to sustain itself. it is my determination and motivation to generate a synthesis between farms and design to form an economy that is sustainable (economically and environmentally) for my own practice and supportive for the farms that sell straw bales.

another source of income that farms can sustain themselves on around here is selling corn for fuel. it can be a cheaper method for providing energy and is a renewable resource as well. this is another story though . . . farmers are always striving for their ideas to be heard when i go around searching for bales and share my interests. i love it. there's nothing better than a fat pig chewing hay and scratching it's ass on the gate while we talk about strategy in making money and saving the world.

anyhow, i finally found some farms out here where i live, not technically, but out west where i live - that sell bales for $1.50 dollars each. i got 4 rye and 5 wheat bales.

i'm currently seeking for oat straw - but i guess oat serves no use to the agriculture economy around here in michigan, at least these parts. i might have to take a trip to battle creek where kellogg is. gotto eat my wheaties. soon i will be testing combinations of wheat/rye, wheat/oat, oat/rye. . . etc. to see what combo makes the perfect recipe for a structural material.

so - to get fibers, i started to (shall i dare say) "chop." "chopping" is such a stupid thing to do - it's trivial. there's no way to rationalize the word "chop" and it's a waste of time in theorizing about "chopping." give it a break bill. if anything, the trailer's not being "chopped" - it's taking up space.

after "chopping". . . i sift. i think i sifted for 16 hrs total and "chopped" 3 bales that provided me with over a 100 gallons of fine natarual straw fibers.

the left over sifted material will go back to the strawbale studio for compost for a permaculture project. nothing is wasted.

so, now what am i supposed to build with so much material? first i have to find the perfect recipe for bonding this natural fiborous material. for now, i will use wheat paste. however, i plan to boil the fibers with sodium carbonate to release its own starches/sugars to bond together through compression. in combination with this, i will utilize abaca pulp to make something like thick paper - OSB. this will give structure to what i want to build.

i think i want to challenge myself and build a dome with this stuff. there's something about a dome that intrigues me. it manifests everything in architecture. structure, form, material, and space are all complex problems that architecture adheres itself to. so i attempted to make hexagons like bucky with a slight taper to each of the faces.

it didn't work. i'm so stupid - i knew this would happen. i couldn't get the form out. so i went to 3d and used their vaccum forming machine. i went to buy plastic at acrylic hustlepiece (really acrylic specialties) and found some recycled 1/16 inch plastic.

and it still got stuck.

anyhow, i haven't released the hex/block yet - it's been about a week and it's still a little soft. wheat paste doesn't cut it. unfortuneately it also attracts a lot of flies. i didn't do layers, this time - i poured it all in at once and it made the fibers too an-isotropic so it just decompressed itself. hence a loosley fexible block. i've got to do it OSB style with abaca and sodium carbonate. i will post if it works or not.

i guess i should say - whenever our shops get going, hopefully soon - my thesis will take on the role of fusing natural building with digital fabrication with fricken' lazers.


oct. 14th - 16th is the BIONEERS.
i will be holding workshops and providing an introduction to deanne's strawbale studio presentation of the importance of natural building within the context of the city of detroit.