THE MELTING ARCHIVE

by Thomas Riddell-Webster

Based on sensitive speculation, The Melting Archive seeks to soften Hanoi city amid a rapidly developing urban context, allowing the harmonious development of the urban and social fabric. Hanoi’s 1000 year old tradition of kite flying provides a vehicle for the creation of temporary spaces that will facilitate the daily social practices of Hanoi, that are being forced off the street by the vision of a first world country. The result is a project that on the surface preserves one of Hanoi’s longest living traditions but in the background, works hard to provide the tools for the organic reconstruction of Hanoi’s culture. Utilising a chemical formula, derived from the process of kite construction, bio-polymer building elements are constructed and combined to form spaces that will melt back into earth’s ecosystem after a range of durations. Each decay provides the opportunity for redesign, allowing the building to evolve alongside contemporary requirements.