Antioch College Tea Pavilion, 2012-14 [Design Build Workshop Leader]
Antioch College Organic Farm, Yellow Springs, OH
On April 14th and 15th, a small collaborative group of professional artists/architects/designers/builders including Rod Northcutt, Charlie Vinz, Jillian Soto and Sara Black led the first part of a design build project with Antioch College students and community members at the newly reopened at Antioch College. The project was focused on the Antioch College Organic Farm. Participants include: current Antioch students Sam Senzek, Maisie Taibbi, Rachael Smith, Nargees Jumahan, Adam Abraham; newly admitted student Gabe Amrhein; and community members Carissa Burkett, Ethan Miller, and Antioch College Farm Director Kat Christen. The design charrette held that weekend led to designs for a newly considered international tea garden and shelter at the farm. The design and plans were developed around the ritual process of building, the event of harvesting, steeping and drinking tea inspired by many cultures, and the importance of ‘water’ on the farm.
Students and community members in Yellow Springs along with the grounds crew at Antioch College took down and salvaged the material from the existing tea house built in the 1970?s, poured footings for the new structure, and pulled up the concrete from the non-functioning pond during the week of May 5th.
On June 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, the group leaders, students and community members work to start building the the renewed Tea Shelter. Our work included gathering materials from the area, starting to build a cordwood and mortar wall and beginning to build the overarching structure. Materials included a mix of soft and hard cordwoods from the Glen (as donated by (George Bieri), a local source (as donated by Paul Abendroth), White Oak salvaged from the floor of the previous structure (now the posts and lintels), White Oak donated to the project by Richard Lapedes with the help of Richard Zopf (salvaged from an old Yellow Springs building – floor joists likely), and limestone from the nearby quarry.
