Arcosanti: The Bizarre Little Town
In 1970 an unusual experimental town was constructed and
named “Arcosanti”. Arcosanti is located
about 70 miles north of Phoenix and was built using a concept called, arcology. This principal combined architecture and
ecology and developed to show how a town can “demonstrate how urban conditions could be improved while minimizing
the destructive impact of the earth. The
town aims to combine principles such as minimal resource use and access to the
natural environment.”
Arcrosanti was constructed as a tentative town and located
on 25 acres of land preserve. With the
most current structure completed in 1989, this site housed around 50 to 150
inhabitants who were either students or volunteers living on this location. There are 13 buildings which are quite a few
stories high and include a visitors’ center, café, gift shop, a bronze-casting
apse, a ceramics apse, two large barrel vaults, a ring of apartment residences,
and various stores. All these places
surround an outdoor amphitheater, a community swimming pool, an office complex,
and Soleri’s suite which is a two-story “Sky Suite” at the highest point of the
complex. This space is reserved for
overnight guests.
“Many features are
particular to the design and construction of Arcosanti, for example the use of
tilt-up concrete panels that are cast in a bed of silt acquired from the
surrounding area, which gives the concrete a unique texture and colour and
helps it blend in with the landscape. Many of the panels were cast with
embedded art. Most of the buildings are oriented toward the south to capture
the sun's light and heat — with roof designs that admit the maximum amount of
sun in the winter and a minimal amount during the summer. For example, the
bronze-casting apse is built in the form of a quarter sphere or semi-dome. The
layout of the buildings is intricate and organic, rather than a North American
style city grid, with a goal of maximum accessibility to all of the elements,
increased social interaction and bonds, and a sense of privacy for the
residents.”
Today, Arcosanti contains its own greenhouses, gardens, and agricultural
fields. The place has workshops and classes
where students from all over come to participate in. There are plans to build more structures such
as a large-scale building which will be the biggest one in the town. Present day construction is done by workshop
participants and volunteers. People visiting the bizarre settlement can take a
guided tour or spend the night in one of the guest housings. Arcosanti sales metal and ceramic bells made
from the bronze located in the town and donations/fees for the workshops taught
there to keep it going. Do I plan to
visit there? Maybe someday.
That place is a freaky weird design. They rent rooms there like a motel, but it's rather rustic.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I am not sure I want to spend the night there, but if we feel like it, someday we will have to visit and see the place for ourselves.
DeleteUse to go to Cosanti and Arcosanti a lot many years ago. My adopted cousin worked as the chef in the restaurant there. She became a trans-sexual and he continued as the chef, until he became a lawyer.
ReplyDelete