Wednesday, February 8, 2012

A Tale of Two Realities

In his essay, A Tale of Two Realities, Bill relates his, and wife Joan Rockwell's, experiences as they traveled to Nova Scotia and Haiti, in June and November 2011, respectively.

Briefly, Bill and Joan ventured to Nova Scotia for a rewarding conference with peers in architecture and landscape architecture.  Five months later, they were off to Haiti with Marky Jean-Pierre of the Honor for Haiti Foundation (FONHOH) to visit the country and the site of a proposed educational complex in the rural region of Lagoun. This experience was eye-opening and soul-moving, and has further inspired and motivated Bill and Joan to work toward the creation of positive change in the U.S. and abroad.

Enjoy reading.

Photos of the two trips follow below, along with conceptual drawings for the Lagoun-based education center:

Haiti - Bird's eye view of the Lagoun site



Haiti - Site view key plan


Haiti - Eye-level view from roof deck


Haiti - A neighbor's farmhouse


Nova Scotia - Historic Lunenberg


Nova Scotia - Historic Lunenberg


Haiti - Local chairmaker's house


Haiti - Neighbors and future students


Haiti - Neighbors and future students


Nova Scotia - One of the many Brian MacKay-Lyons houses visible around Shobac. They have been compared to vernacular barns, bobbing shipping containers or breaching whales.


Nova Scotia - One of two observatory towers built at Shobac during a previous Ghost Lab


Haiti - Roadside vendors


Haiti - Rural village streetlife


Nova Scotia - Shobac is available to rent for conferences. Below are the barn, cottages and conference building.


Nova Scotia - Stutchbury, Murcott, Frampton & Pallasmaa. Photo by Marcus Gleysteen.


Haiti - The founders of FONHOH and Joan


Nova Scotia - The octagonal barn where the lectures were held. A previous Ghost Lab deconstructed it and reassembled it at Shobac.


Haiti - The old school on the site


Nova Scotia - The octagonal dining tents plated well against the barn


Haiti - View from the school site


Haiti - View from the school site


Haiti - View from the school site


















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