Restorative Forestry by Jacob Smiley.

After exploring Northern California's iconic redwood forests and their history with unsustainable logging, land, and real estate development practices, graduate student Jacob Smiley has proposed Restorative Forestry, a new way for people and the built environment to interact with forests. According to Smiley, "The thesis presents itself as a case study within the Muir Woods National Monument, a federal preserve located just 10 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge [...] this thesis primarily focuses on the study of redwood as a structural material as well as the incorporation of biomimetics to closely mirror the ecological niche of the redwood and support the ecology, all of which to be packaged under formal guise of a tower."

Archinect was able to connect with Smiley, a recent Tulane University School of Architecture graduate, to learn more about the semester's transition from in-person to digital presentations and to hear his perspective on the job market for graduates in 2020.

Archinect's Spotlight on 2020 Thesis Projects: 2020 has been an extraordinarily challenging year for architecture graduates. Students were displaced as schools shut down, academic communities had to adapt to a new virtual format, end-of-year celebrations were canceled or changed dramatically, and now these students are graduating into an extremely challenging employment market. To support the 2020 class we're launching a summer series of features highlighting the work of thesis students during this unique time of remote learning amid COVID-19. Be sure to follow our 2020 thesis tag to stay up to date as we release new project highlights.

This thesis proposes the implementation of symbiotic design strategies to actively preserve the unique ecosystem of the coastal redwood as well as creating a superior built environment through which people can interact with the forest.

Briefly describe your thesis.

Before western intervention, nearly 2 million acres of old-growth redwood forest existed in Northern California. Historically unsustainable logging practices coupled with modern real estate and agricultural development has reduced this number to 5% of the original total. While most of the remaining old-growth forests occupy state or federally protected land, this fails to address climatological threats induced by climate change, namely the hotter, dryer summers that threaten to completely destabilize the hydrology of the Redwood Rainforest. This thesis proposes the implementation of symbiotic design strategies to actively preserve the unique ecosystem of the coastal redwood as well as creating a superior built environment through which people can interact with the forest.

The architecture proposed within this thesis primarily focuses on the study of redwood as a structural material as well as the incorporation of biomimetics to closely mirror the ecological niche of the redwood and support the ecology, all of which to be packaged under formal guise of a tower. The program of these towers will be split into two components; the Fog Tower, and the Bio Tower, each of which designed to support the ecosystem. In the case of the Fog Tower, it is skinned with a membrane designed to pull fog out of the air and a cistern to store the water, before redistributing it through vaporizers at the top of the tower. Bio Tower is to be skinned with a trellis to be colonized by the numerous plant species found within the forest in addition to nesting opportunities for endangered bird species found within the forest. Lastly, the visitor’s experience will be amplified through a redesigned visitor’s center incorporating superior educational infrastructure as well as housing artists who wish to immerse themselves in the environment.

I began to focus all my efforts into digital representation and really streamlining the slides to best convey my project in this new medium.

How did your project change as studios transitioned to remote learning?

Since the design aspects of my thesis were dependent on the utilization of salvaged redwood from the forest as a building material, the final presentation was initially going to be much more closely tied to materiality glorifying the redwood through the creation of large wooden models. Obviously as the studio transitioned to a remote setting this became unrealistic and impractical, and I began to focus all my efforts into digital representation and really streamlining the slides to best convey my project in this new medium. The result was likely much clearer and more effective at getting the point across than it would have been with a physical presentation.

Make sure you do everything you can to make the project matter to you.

Any tips for students working through their final projects?

Make sure you really enjoy what you’re doing! The flexibility and creative control that you have over your final project can work to your detriment if you’re not self-motivated. At Tulane at least, you’re given the opportunity to select your own project and tackle pretty much any issue you can think of. Because of this, you’re likely going to receive much less direction than you would in a typical academic studio so it's crucial that you enjoy the work that you’re doing, otherwise you run the risk of losing your motivation. Make sure you do everything you can to make the project matter to you.

How do you feel about the architecture industry right now and job prospects?

We are in the process of watching history be made. This presents many challenges and opportunities within our industry to serve as a catalyst for change. I do not think there has been a more interesting time to practice architecture in recent memory. Of course, on the other side of the coin, finding gainful employment in this environment is as challenging as ever. I wish all my fellow graduates the best of luck.