Earth bricks workshop “Jeux d’adobes”
Slovakia, 2022
Organized by : ACTeco
Adobe workshop led by : Gian Franco Noriega / amàco
Objectives: Introduce and raise awareness among participants about earth construction techniques and their architectural applications
Recognize all stages of the earth production cycle for the adobe construction sector.
Understand the link between production and implementation techniques and architecture through an understanding of the physical and chemical properties of earth materials.
ACTeco is a European online course platform, the result of collaboration among partners from Slovakia (ArTUR, SIOV, SOS), Austria (asbn), Czech Republic (SHS), and France (AsTerre). The objective of this project is to provide the general public, but especially teachers and trainers, with freely available online courses for their training, whether in-person or remote. These courses cover three themes: raw earth, straw, and sustainable development. In the frame of this project and as members of the Frensh association AsTerre, we had the opportunity to be part of one of the in-person workshops held in Slovakia at the Ecocentrum ArTUR .
The workshop was punctuated by very interesting visits to local ecological projects such as the hobbit house built in Hruby Šúr by Prof. Gernot Minke the author of “Building with earth,” and Ing. arch. Zuzana Kierulfová and Mgr. art. Bjorn Kierulf. Additionally, we visited the eco-cocon straw wall system developed by Bjorn Kierulf and the earthen plaster artisanal factory Arterre operated by the craftswomen Hlinené Omietky in Žarnovica. Finally, we also explored the depths of the Slovak Open Air Mining Museum at Štôlňa Bartolomej, where we witnessed the harsh realities of mining and its impact on the environment. This journey underground provided a stark reminder of the depths to which humanity has gone in its relentless pursuit of natural resources.
