
Increasing globalization not only forces economies to become more and more dependent from each other; also the global ecological system is influenced by the continuous increase of all human activities. The complexity of this impact on the environment can be compared with the butterfly effect, a term used to describe the sensitive (inter)dependence of different actions on initial conditions, showing how tiny variations can affect giant and complex systems. The flapping wings of a butterfly - just a small change in the initial condition of the system - can cause a chain of events leading to large-scale alterations. Had the butterfly not flapped its wings, the trajectory of the system may have been vastly different. True or not, small actions can certainly affect change in complex systems in unexpected ways. World population is only slowly starting to become aware of their role. Changing this is not easy, when economic growth is the magic word. If mankind wants to survive, radical steps are needed to bridge the gap between growth and sustainability.

Butterflies are ‘indicator species’ for climate change, as they are particularly sensitive to environmental degradation. Their decline therefor serves as an ‘early warning’ on environmental conditions. Also Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth house (built in
1951, and considered one of the most radically minimalist houses ever designed, conceived as an indoor-outdoor architectural shelter fully intertwined with the domain of nature) can be seen as an indicator of man’s impact on the environment. The house, located near Fox river, was built on poles and designed in such a way that high water would not reach the house. But, as a result of urbanization and climate change, the river began to rise dramatically in the 1950s, and since the past ten years, the river regularly floods the house. Are you really sure that a floor can't also be a ceiling? brings these elements together in an architectural model loosely based on the Farnsworth house. But here the model functions as the temporary home for butterflies - ultimate agents of transformation, change and recycling. Radical change is in their life cycle. Transforming from one state to another, they never are what they appear to be. Visitors can enter the house. The glass walls allow full view on the man-made greenhouse and its visitors inside, as actors on a stage-set. The transparent walls also protect the climate inside and create a membrane between interior - and museum space. Both nature and audience become a spectacle inside the confinements of the museum wall. Everyone's uploads
index | search | contact

< Bik Van der Pol


> Past Imperfect

> Public Arena

> Catching Some Air