THE CATHEDRAL
Csoromfolde, Hungary
Built for Hello Wood, Project Village, 2017
Design - Build
Photographs by Claudio Parada Nunes
The Cathedral project revolved around the development of a structural detail and method-based investigation utilizing interpretations of traditional timber-frame constructs. The project was built as a standard assembly that could be used to construct an array of building types and could conceivably be expanded upon until infinity. The structure consists entirely of four-inch by four-inch beams cut to various sizes and notched out at repeating intervals. These beams then fit together in a gridded pattern that can be expanded upon to create a diverse set of shapes and forms. Thus, the project is less about proposing a completed vision and more about experimenting with what could be built using this systematic design.
The project is built on top of the ruined foundation of a two-hundred-year-old villa. By simultaneously repurposing an old structure, and seeking purpose for a new one, the installation begins to investigate the juxtaposition of brevity and permanence—habitation and visitation. Furthermore, whitewashed paint allows the structure to maintain a textural wooden quality while at the same time unifying the pieces so as to be seen as one singular element nested within an ecosystem of trees, stones, animals, and people.
