Social Dress Buffalo: The Past Reflecting the Future
2010
Latex, acrylic pigment, cheesecloth, PVC pipe, rope, debris from abandoned homes
14ft x 14ft x 6.5ft

During the early twentieth century, architects posited shapes such as the dome or sphere as the future of architecture. Possessing unique iconic forms and the virtue of increased structural strength at a low material cost, these architectural shapes became closely tied to utopian counter-culture movements (Burning Man) and futuristic model communities (Drop City or the Libre Community in Colorado). Geodesic domes and Dymaxion homes like prefab and modular housing methods that were developing in parallel, accomplished their goals by drawing on concepts implicit within modernist design such as mass production, simplification, dismissal of ornamentation and focus on functionality. While this project does not suggest that these are the forms future Buffalo area housing should take, the dome is a symbol of the impulse to decrease construction costs, maximize use of space and materials, and conserve energy costs necessary to create a better housing infrastructure and a sustainable future, and as such forms one of the bases of this project. However, recognizing the flaw inherent in these easily replicable but ultimately impersonal structures that makes them undesirable to large swaths of the population, the design of this work, and most specifically the colorful patchwork skin of the construction, also draws upon “primitive” structures that are more individual but still efficient in design and cost, such as the yurt and the wigwam. While not proposing that we should revert back to a time pre-industrialization, a reconsideration of the psychological effects and practical considerations (mobility, ease of construction, strength, accessibility of low-cost materials) that are implicit to these designs is a key to finding novel, sustainable solutions to housing problems.

Social Dress Buffalo: The Past Reflecting the Future is imagined as a monument to the past that also serves as inspiration for the future. Constructed to the dimensions of an average adult using a pvc conduit understructure, it is covered with latex skins of various shapes and colors cast from existing vacant housing in abandoned neighborhoods around Buffalo. Showing the individual hands of the volunteers I worked with through their choice of color and skin-shape, and incorporating – through the casting process – the distinctive details that make these abandoned houses desirable but unaffordable, this hybrid futuristic-primitive structure will be constructed as a meeting place for conversation and consideration. While the exterior reveals the history of Buffalo’s neighborhoods through the replicated surfaces of her homes, the interior becomes a cathedral-like space of contemplation by the virtue of the stained glass-like effect of the colorful cast latex skins.

A major component of my work is conversations with and involvement of local activist groups such as Buffalo ReUse and PUSH Buffalo that address the ideas behind the construction of this small-scale monument. Working with young volunteers from these organizations as well as students from art and architecture programs in the Buffalo area, we visited sites hard-hit by the depopulation of the city to understand the physical and psychological impact of these economic and structural problems. The casting of architectural details became the means through which volunteers could acquaint themselves with these neighborhoods, begin conversations with local residents, and confront the city’s housing problems directly on a personal level. Inspired by the simple solutions such as urban gardens and community-building activities, this project was conceived of as a way to instill a sense of togetherness and similarity of purpose within the various communities of Buffalo so as to foster empowerment among local citizens.