Minimal Intervention Master of Architecture Architecture MADA Now 2022

Zoe Swoboda

Throughout my studies I have developed an interest in architecture's ability to carry and centre narratives. It is able to reveal or conceal key aspects of the land in which it sits and centralise or marginalise different narratives, agents and stories.

The intention of this body of work is to probe at the colonial acts of agriculture and production, to critique and call into question these practices. The intention of this body of work is not to do away with this past, but rather to reframe and call into question their status as absolute in order to create an architecture that is more responsive to its context.

Winery Section - Productive Spaces

Mimicking the flow of water down the steep slope of the site, the winery portion of the project employs a "gravity fed" system to allow the wine to flow through the various stages of production. Moving from sorting, crushing and pressing, to stainless steel tank fermentation, to earthenware aging, to bottling and storing, each of these components will affect the overall palate or "terroir" of the wine. Each materiality has been chosen carefully, particularly earthenware aging tanks which limit oxidation and create a more delicate tannin in the wine.

Winery Blends with Landscape

The contours of the productive section of the site are solidified through a series of concrete retaining walls that gather the earth. These dictated the location and sizing of each of the productive spaces of the winery. The winery is embedded in the earth, making use of the retaining walls as its primary foundation structure and repurposing the excavated earth as rammed earth walls to form the winery. It falls with the slope of the site, coyly poking out of the landscape. Each space can only be accessed from outdoor circulation, decentring efficiency as the main goal of productive space.

Landscape Section - Places of Rest

Throughout the terraced landscape are points of wandering, circulation, gathering and rest. Drawing from my own experience of walking the site, I experimented with the sensations of walking along or parallel to the contours, a leisurely stroll, and walking perpendicularly to the contours, a laborious task. This interplay of parallel and perpendicular creates a pace to the site, with points of gathering and rest to generate pauses within the movement.

Sheltered Shelter

Each moment of gathering and rest on the site is intended to be in response to the unique elements and conditions of the site.

A clear shelter protects from the rain but not the sun, but a tree offers the shade so desperately needed. Responding to the conditions of water and light, a new experience is created from the contradictory nature of sheltering a shelter.

Cellar Door Section - Leisurely Spaces

The cellar door area, where wine is served and sold, is a lightweight timber frame structure with a rammed earth services "core". It is an expansive, gridded space that is derived from repetition and regularity. However, the inhabitation thereof is what creates points of spontaneity and irregularity in its ability to be adjusted to suit the weather and wants of the patrons.

Bringing Out In

Rather than removing the site experience and flattening it to a framed view, the building shell or "façade" can be folded away in various ways to allow varying degrees of permeability between outside and in. This creates various mixtures and measures of outdoor and indoor space that cannot be experienced the same way twice.

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