Concrete is often seen as monolithic and immutable. It is exactly these qualities that we wanted to challenge throughout the course as well as in the final installation at the Yale Center for Teaching and Learning. We chose a 10 feet by 8 feet high glass niche, flanked by white painted gypsum to exhibit our concrete installation. Due to the large vertical surface area that we were tasked with covering, we resolved to a method of stacking thin conical shapes in order to achieve structural stability, and lightness, as well as interesting lighting and visual effects on both sides. The process included mixing cement with concrete into plastic cones and inserting identical cones, offset half an inch. Due to the nature of hand-fabrication, out of the 220 cones no two are identical. Air pockets, sawdust, cracks, and chips are evidence of the process and characteristics embedded in each concrete cone, adding life and character to a sterile space.

In collaboration with Serena Ching and Baolin Shen

Instructor: Emily Abruzzo