泰国东北部素林府的奎族人数百年来一直是大象的饲养者。大象被视为家庭成员,与大象生活在一起是他们悠久传统中不可分割的一部分。但随着经济的发展和大面积的森林砍伐,他们遭受了干旱、食物短缺和森林曾经提供的药用植物。在过去的几十年里,这两只大象流落到泰国各地的许多旅游城市,住在大象营地里,有的生活条件和生活习惯都不合适。

Kui, the ethnic people of Surin Province in north-eastern Thailand have been elephant keepers for centuries. Elephants are considered family members, and living with elephants has been an inseparable part of their long heritage. But following the economic growth and extensive deforestation, they suffered droughts, shortages of food and medicinal plants the forest once provided. The last decades saw the two displaced to many tourist towns across Thailand, living in elephant camps, some with unsuitable living conditions and routine.

大象世界是由当地政府发起的一个项目,试图让奎族和他们的大象回到家乡,并确保大象的合适生活条件。该项目包括魁族村落、指定种植食物的田地、大象医院、博物馆,以及为了未来的可持续发展而恢复邻近的保留森林的举措。

Elephant World is a project initiated by the local government in an attempt to bring the Kui and their elephants back to their hometown and to ensure the suitable living condition for the elephants. The project includes the Kui village, a field designated for growing food, an elephant hospital, a museum, as well as initiatives to restore the neighboring reserved forest for sustainable future.

站在大象世界和森林之间的边缘,砖砌观景塔仿佛从地面上冒出来。它高28米,宽8米,长14米。它的基座是椭圆形的,一边是锐角,以减少风力和分散太阳的热量。由于柱子和梁的排列,形成了80×80厘米和35×90厘米的开口交替的格局。在塔楼的中心,有钢网楼梯,在减弱上面的阳光的同时,给人以无遮挡的朝天视野。在塔的顶部,高低不一的柱子营造出建筑消失在空气中的错觉。

Standing on the edge between the Elephant World and the forest, the Brick Observation Tower seems to sprout from the ground. It is 28 meters high, 8 meters wide and 14 meters long. Its footprint is oval, with an acute angle on one side to reduce the wind strength and to diffuse the heat from the sun. The arrangement of columns and beams results in an alternating pattern of 80×80 cm and 35×90 cm openings. At the center of the tower lies the steel mesh staircase, giving an unobstructed view towards the sky while attenuating the sunlight from above. At the top of the tower, poles of random heights create an illusion of the building disappearing into the air.

150x300x50毫米大小的粘土砖包围着混凝土结构的交错网格。这些砖块代表了一种努力,让被从社区中剥离的森林重现。它们是由当地建造一个新的水库时挖出的土制成的,以容纳地下水和雨水。除了为贫瘠的土地恢复水分外,该塔还可以为种植更多的树木做出贡献。当地的阿皮通树有一颗种子,形状像直升机的螺旋桨,使其旋转并在空中航行。它落在哪里,哪里就会长出一棵新的Apitong树。从顶层20米高的平台上撒下种子,借助当地每小时29-38公里的风速,种子最远可以传到半径20米的地方。

Clay bricks of 150x300x50 mm in size enclose the crisscrossing grid of concrete structure. These bricks represent an effort to bring back the forest that had been stripped away from the community. They are made locally from the earth that resulted from the construction of a new water reservoir dug to contain ground and rainwater. More than restoring moisture to the barren land, the tower could contribute to planting more trees. The local Apitong tree has a seed that shaped like a helicopter propeller, making it spin and sails through the air. Where it drops, a new Apitong tree will grow. Dispersing the seeds from the 20-metre high platform on the top floor, and with the help of the local wind speed of 29-38 km/h, the seeds could travel as far as a 20-metre radius.

观景塔通常会加速游客向上攀登。而这座观景塔却鼓励游客在一天中的不同时间段,慢慢感受风,吸收周围的风景。从塔上往下看,他们可能会思考大象和人类之间的共存关系。这里有人类和大象的房子,有人类和大象的墓地,都被森林拥抱着,每天都有魁族和他们的大象使用的小径穿行。最终,森林将回归土地,而这座人工建筑也将屈服于自然,只在它的顶点露出来。

Observation towers usually accelerate the upward movement of visitors to the top. This Observation Tower, however, encourages visitors to take their time, feel the wind and absorb the surrounding landscape at different times of the day. Looking down from the tower, they may reflect on the coexistence between elephants and humans. There are human and elephant houses, human and elephant graveyards, all embraced by the forest and traversed by trails used by the Kui and their elephants each day. Eventually, the forest shall return to the land, and this manmade building will succumb to nature, peaking out only at its apex.

建筑师: Bangkok Project Studio
面积: 510 m²
年份:2020年
摄影作品:Spaceshift Studio
建筑师:Boonerm Premthada.
设计团队:Boonserm Premthada, Nathan Mehl
工程师:普雷查-苏瓦帕普库尔(Preecha Suvaparpkul)
客户:Surin Provincial Administration Organisation
工程及建造:K Golden Land Limited Partnership
顾问:Surin Provincial Administration Organisation
国家:泰国
Architects: Bangkok Project Studio
Area: 510 m²
Year: 2020
Photographs: Spaceshift Studio
Architect In Charge:Boonserm Premthada
Design Team:Boonserm Premthada, Nathan Mehl
Engineer :Preecha Suvaparpkul
Clients:Surin Provincial Administration Organisation
Engineering And Construction:K Golden Land Limited Partnership
Consultants:Surin Provincial Administration Organisation
Country:Thailand