possibly my final statement? yeah right...

How can architecture still define space for inhabitation, and

simultaneously embrace the effects of environmental processes?

All materials are impressionable, preserving environmental and human traces.

Water is the largest contributor to weathering - staining, decay, and

horizontal datum lines left by floods and canal tides. It is the discovery

of prior occurrences in a space that create intrigue and desire for interaction.

Weathered surfaces are defined through particular orientations and layers of materials.

Levels of porosity and degrees of repetition determine the preserving of more or less traces

on a material. Existing surfaces already containing traces are incorporated with new surfaces

to offer the understanding and education of the effects of water. Like the time sensitive effects of water, a place of temporal leisure and travel is created in the exterior environment.

New Orleans clearly retains a rich history and revolves around water: the Mississippi River

to the south, Lake Pontchartrain to the north, the connecting canal and endless bayous

and streams (all of which flooded during Katrina). And walking through the city,

water is almost a constant visibility and when not a visibility, certainly a presence.