SS 2017: EARTH BUILDING WORKSHOP in GHANA
(further information see below)
Aim of The Seminar (in general)
Earth is one of the most widely used building materials in the world. Because of its ecological advantages, but also because of its aesthetic and haptic qualities, earth buildings have gained new attention within the last decades. It is the aim of the seminar, to provide the students with insights in earth building technologies of different regions using a cross-cultural perspective. Through hands-on experiences with the material a feeling for the specifics and characteristic qualities of earth as a building material should be developed.
Contents of the seminar (in general)
Besides providing the students with the theoretic foundations (historic development, different earth building technologies, material characteristics, methods of processing etc.) the practical experience of working with earth which will help to develop a relation to the material. The following earth building methods will be experienced:
- production of earth mixtures
- processing of earth, quality tests
- production of adobe tiles
- construction of a rammed earth wall
- wattle and daub walls
- testing of different additives and their implications on the earth quality
- clay plastering techniques etc.
Impressions of former workshops:
https://vimeo.com/77064909
MudCAFETERIA - Building a Cafeteria for an Earthen School in Ghana
The Earth Building Workshop in SS 2017 will be offered in combination with the excursion 251.702 Non-European Architecture (2 ects) and the softskill 251.730 Transdisciplinary Interactions (3 ects), total 7.5 ects
Lecturers: Anna Schweiger, Jaap Willemsen
Project description:
In the small village of Abetenim in Ghana there is no Secondary School. If children older then 12 years old want to go to school they have to overcome long distances. To provide the children of Abetenim with profound education, the existing primary scholl should be extended by a secondary school. To reach this aim, the NKA-foundation initiated an international architecture competition. From the 130 submissions the project MudCafeteria from Anna Schweiger and Jaap Willemsen was chosen as a winning project. The implementation of the project will take place in summer 2017 with the help of volunteers and the local people.
Earth building seminar:
Based on the traditional way of building with earth and on the experiences of former projects the cafeteria of the school will be implemented together with students from TU Vienna and with local volunteers and construction workers. The aim will be to implement a sustainable building method which raises the awareness for local building traditions. The students will not only have the possibility to get to know the building material earth in all its aspects, they will also have the opportunity to learn about the obstacles, difficulties and achievements of implementing a building project in the development context.
To successfully complete the seminar, a minimum of two weeks have to be spent on the spot in Ghana. The stay can also be extended.
Suggestions for visiting interesting buildings and projects in Ghana - during, before or after the earth building seminar - will be made during the introduction lectures.
Seminar dates:
Tuesday, 11.45 pm until app. 2:00 pm, Sem.room 251-1, Stair 3, 3rd floor
Introductory lecture: 21st March, 11:45 am
All other dates see German version.
Please consider the plagiarism guidelines of TU Wien when writing your seminar paper:
http://www.tuwien.ac.at/fileadmin/t/ukanzlei/t-ukanzlei-english/Plagiarism.pdf
Please consider the plagiarism guidelines of TU Wien when writing your seminar paper:
Directive concerning the handling of plagiarism (PDF)Please consider the plagiarism guidelines of TU Wien when writing your seminar paper:
Directive concerning the handling of plagiarism (PDF)
