Semester: Spring 2025
Location: Syracuse, NY
Instructor: Elizabeth Kamell
Collaborator: Juinkye (Kyle) Chiang
Location: Syracuse, NY
Instructor: Elizabeth Kamell
Collaborator: Juinkye (Kyle) Chiang
The Machine Clads Itself takes material flows as inspiration, designing around the ways that materials move in ceramic making, firing, glazing, and displaying. This includes not only clay as it is extracted, shipped, mixed, formed, displayed, and broken - but also rare earth elements, water, heat, air, light, and humans. Each play an important role in the production and pedagogy of ceramic arts, and each define spatial characteristics of this project.
Clay is exemplary of these complex material flows. It comes to the ComArt building from around the world, both thousands of miles away (Japan) and a few miles away (local artists). It arrives at the loading dock as powder and must be mixed with water and reinvigorated before use. As the clay is formed by hand or on wheels, small bits of material are removed until the vessel is ready to be fired. The excess is returned to the clay mixing room where it is recycled and begins the process anew. For the clay that was fired, it is lifted above the earth and can never return. Combining with heat, water, and rare earth minerals in the form of glazes, it proceeds to the exhibition space or is shipped out across the world again.
Each system of material flows is just as complex and nuanced. Students, faculty, staff, and visitors move through the building and surrounding area in ways that connect them not only to each other, but also to the material flows and systems which define the ceramic arts.
The project is split into three primary architectural elements: The Process Bar, the Exhibition Wall, and the Crossing.
