The Cleansing Object
Design Thesis
The Cleansing experience is a journey of purification and bonding. The cozy bathing will intersperse with religious pilgrimage, taking the full advantage of the steep slope. The architecture will incorporate functions of dust sheltering and water recollection, to reduce resource waste and long term ecological use. The innovative construction method of earth casting and superficial foundation will prevent the construct from contaminating underground water and minimize the influence on existing natural conditions. The architecture is acting as an interface in-between the miner’s fatal working environment and normal city life, also as a long term junction to reconnect the mining communities including family members by introducing bathing related gathering spaces for a variety of social units.
Design Methodology
The design developed from Environmental and Structural experimentations around two main elements: vault and pool. The Vault uses a hanging chain model reference to Antonio Gaudi, was tested by asymmetrical weighting strategies to meet the complexity of site topography. With technical study it was developed into a digital simulation system, corresponding with two main materialization strategies: self-supporting metal panels and vernacular construct. The ground condition is rich by earth casted pool typology, which designed to be cast into the sloped and cantilevered by self-supporting structure. Sitting in the context of Bolivian culture and fashion, the architecture is inheriting their enhancement of head character though exterior ventilation design on the roof. Hierarchy is expressed though the exterior design and curated height of space.
The Troubled Waters of Potosí
Potosí lies near the headwaters of a major Bolivian watershed, the Rio Pilcomayo which flows from central Bolivia east to Argentina. Water resources in and around the city of Potosí have been dramatically and continuously impacted geomorphologically, geochemically, and ecologically by human activities since the initiation of mining. Potosí’s city limit found dissolved metals concentrations orders of magnitude above background levels. Miller documented severe contamination of water and sediments up to 200 km downstream of Cerro Rico. Bolivian water quality standards are stringent, progressive, and comparable with those of most industrial nations. Mining and ore processing are considerable contributors to water quality degradation downstream of the Cerro Rico mines. Streams and rivers that receive AMD, tailings discharges and runoff from mining areas or tailings deposits, or impacted tributaries that do so, contain concentrations of ecotoxic metals (As, Cd, Co, Pb, and Zn) that render them unusable and environmental hazards. However, the weathering of tailings within the bed of Rio Tarapaya appears to present a strong enough signal to override some of the effects of the natural attenuation that occurs in its tributaries. diffuse acid rock drainage, terrestrial tailings, in-stream tailings, and tailings discharges are likely contributors to water quality degradation and should be further studied to determine remediation priorities.
Earth Casted Pools
The site of the project have two main local resource : silver and the mountain itself. The mountain cerro rico is not used for any aethetical purpose, and full of lose soil. Earth casting is a time saving and smart way to use the local resource of potosi, and have ease of demoulding .A strategical retaining can be designed thoughout the process without producing a whole mould. The technical challenge of casting a dymaic and fun bathing , cascading pool can be addressed though physical models of earth casting.
