I wrote the opening essay for Architecture Journal’s special feature on “Earthen Architecture.”
This feature was realized through my proposal, prompted by the social challenge of construction-excavated soil.
Leading practitioners of earthen architecture from around the world contribute essays on both contemporary projects and the philosophies behind them.�Notably, Martin Rauch—one of the world’s foremost masters of rammed earth—points out that 50–100% of excavated soil can be used in building.
In my text, “Tsuchi no Tetsufugaku and Non-Constructive Architecture,” I explore soil not as a mere “material,” but as a thought-form, and describe the emerging possibilities of
/ disappearing architecture
/ membrane architecture
/ architecture of emptiness
/ Incised architecture
/ architecture as calligraphy
—a field I regard as “non-constructive architecture.”
I hope this feature serves as an opportunity to reconsider the future of architectural thinking.
Tono Mirai
