MudWorks

MudWorks is a design-build installation and exhibition demonstrating the potential of building with raw earth. Organized by the 2012 Loeb Fellows and led by Anna Heringer and rammed earth specialist Martin Rauch, the design and construction has involved students, faculty, and the public. The companion exhibition within Gund Hall describes eleven exemplary projects from five continents. Three techniques of earth construction were tested and are demonstrated here: rammed earth construction, formwork, and plaster lime. MudWorks demonstrates earth as a material central to architectural discourse for reclaiming cultural identity, providing tactile and human-scaled environments, and producing plentiful labor opportunities.