NONO : SOIL TEMPLE  [Olaniyi Studio + AMAKABA]

Nono: Soil Temple is conceived as a spiritual entity, a sacred space invoking the healing power of soil, and calls on its ability to transform, nurture and release life. Inspired by microscopic worlds, the agricultural and spiritual dimensions of soil, this altar invites us to energize the soil through our chanting, dancing, and praying but even more so to let ourselves be mothered by the womb of the earth. The installation is accompanied by Soil lungs in iron ash, a sonic work inspired by the multiple conversations between the botanical, geological, microbial and invisible entities that make up the soil. Commissioned by Palais de Tokyo, Paris, in collaboration with the Serpentine Galleries, London.

Essential minerals in organic matter rest in the soils architectural structure while billions of bacterial cells are found to make up a forest rhizosphere. This sphere acts as the micro framework for the network of electric signals that send between plant, and soil to insure healthy collective plant growth. Similar to a mothers fertile womb, soil is the Earth’s nurturing apparatus for the development of life on land. The interconnectedness of its micro and macro chemistry acts as the foundation that determines the function of its children - humans, plants and animals. It is because of soil that plants are able to produce the air we breathe, the food we consume, but also soil has a deeply spiritual connection to our well-being. Soil has been used as medicine for thousands of years by a diverse range of cultures around the world. Being buried or submerged fully in soil is used to treat many skin diseases and insomnia. The healing and microscope geometric elegance of soil has been a deep interest for the collaborative work of Amakaba and Olaniyi Studio. In this pavilion of we looked at creating a scared apparatus of soils that functions as a medicinal contemplation space to experience the womb like properties of its internal structure.

Design Components = Installation Materials : Cellulose Fibre,  Cotton Fabric, Metal, Soil, Recycled plastic.

Architectural Function = Observation Space + Space of Emptiness + Community Gathering Space  + Soil Burial Temple

Architectural Internal Scale = 20 - 50 People