PAUSE, SitW

It was constructed as part of the Studio in the Woods workshop July 11-14, 2019 on Ruskin Land at the Wyre Forest Community Land Trust. The project was a result of a co-authored brief and co-developed construction sequence, with 12 person group with diverse skills and backgrounds. Facilitators Berman, Durham and Vasilikou worked with 9 participants including architectural students, craftspeople and members of the local community, over the course of four days. The site was chosen for the opportunity to work within a setting of existing oak samplings. Using light-touch fixings was key to minimising impact on the trees.

The fabrication process was collaborative and non-hierarchical. Group members worked with materials on a principle of “waste-not-want-not”. ‘Pause’ was made from long, green-oak laths cut from slab wood - the waste material left after cutting and processing felled trees. The slab wood would otherwise be burned. Hemp twine was used for fixings and connections. Knotting and “corseting” techniques were used to ensure the trees were unmarked. The assembly followed a hands-on sequential trial-and-error process, testing the bending capacity of each lath and embracing the flexibility of the oak saplings.

The bending, lacing, weaving and connecting of the trees – and nature of the group work – revealed a choreographic and physical quality to the act of making. The intervention was developed without any drawings. Instead, the construction process shaped the final arrangement. The resulting installation enabled visitors to sit, lean, rest within the installation, and walk around a gently looping route through the woodland. Pause was delivered during Studio in the Woods 2019. The summer workshop enables participants to test ideas at 1:1 scale, and to explore non-traditional forms of architectural making and experimentation.