38N, 148W. Extending the ethos of reuse to the aqueous environment, this project reconsiders the plastic detritus in the world’s oceans as building material. By computationally modeling the complex system of forces of the ocean and its intensive gradients, this project coalesces plastic particulates into a self-limiting, dynamically formed, yet chemically inert, supertall building structure, plunging deep into the ocean’s depths. Utilizing advanced material technologies, this project provides a scaffolding for deep sea research vessels in the North Pacific Gyre--the location of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. These vessels navigate through the water column, over time converging on and dispersing within the structure, forming and disbanding spontaneous research communities as they venture to the depths and slowly return to air. By utilizing an existing material condition to build a research facility in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, this project leverages clean-up and rehabilitation for the advancement of science, creating a novel venue for the study of the last and great earthly frontier—the deep ocean.

eVolo Skyscraper Competition 2013
Honorable Mention