David PierceRCA post graduate shortlist 2004 |
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| The project examines the architectural consequences of two future forms of burial. The first is ecological and will help the UK achieve current sustainability targets; fillings, breast implants, and any internal prosthetics are extracted before the body is freeze-dried and shattered. This biodegradable ‘compost’ is then buried in new localised cemeteries in the heart of communities. |
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| The second is defiant. For those that have invested both pain and money on plastic surgery it is inconceivable that their perfect non-biodegradable body should be instantly obliterated in order to save the planet. For these few, aesthetic-suicide is the only means to encapsulate their physical perfection, their exquisite corpse being preserved long after their death for loved-ones to visit. |
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| This near future scenario will materialise in three buildings; a processing plant, a series of chapels and a catacomb. Corpses will arrive at the processing plant from around London by river, before being frozen, shattered and then subjected to a vacuum. The last stages of this process, which are performed in a pool of water, are visible from the chapels. These chapels range in size, the largest and grandest forming the entrance to the catacomb. This former 26-storey residential tower will have been modified to accommodate the exquisite corpses and their viewing rooms. The architectural language of these buildings is suggested by the processes contained within and not imposed on them. |
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Medium size images can be found by clicking on the thumbnails above. David Pierce can be contacted at: The copyright of these designs and images belongs to the author. Please request permission from the authors before copying these images. |
