Sites never exist in isolation; they are part of a larger complex system. The ecological fabric that links us to each other and to the earth is constantly transforming, adapting, evolving, decaying and reproducing. Ft. McClellan represents this transformation. The focus of the MLA II studio (the McClellan Design Lab) is to envision alternative futures for this site that originally was a forest, then a military base and now vacant.

We had preliminary reviews on Friday with Professors Dümpelmann, LaBleu, Pitarri and Williams. This was the first review of the semester and represented an important time in the design process. Over five hours of discussion, debate and inquiry, fifteen students presented their work. The complexities of this site and this project became increasingly clear as the presentations unfolded; and, as usual the discussions were equally complex. Discussions varied from the distinctive ecological processes of the longleaf pine forest to the migratory habits and patterns of waterfowl, to the ideas of cultural and ecological performance. Most importantly, the questions of re-inhabiting the warehouse district at McClellan with an emphasis on the arts and the environment were a common thread of inquiry. The confluence of these ideas requires students to engage and force negotiations of complex human occupation within dynamic and emergent ecological systems. This seems to be the overall theme of the studio and a critical endeavor for Ft McClellan as demands for real estate increase.

Sites are made and remade…