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fondu.

by Hugo Shackleton

Egholm, Denmark
2020



 

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A proposal for a wetland and accompanying lodge on the island of Egholm, Denmark.

A land of nuanced topography, smooth transitions and incessant winds, Denmark is perhaps most marked not by mountain range or forestry, but by its moors and marshlands.

Remains of Stone Age dolmens tell of an ancient fascination for the powers hidden in pools, ponds and lakes, while Bronze Age Danes are known to have been largely seafaring.

In the context of Iron Age climate cooling, communities began building strong, warm shelters and adopted the more reliable life of agriculture. Across the entire country, livestock and farmer took refuge under one roof in what would become a little-evolving archetype.

Few invasions of, or migrations to, the harsh Nordic territory have cemented the survival over centuries of the ‘Danske Bondegård’, a basic yet telling monument to Denmark’s historical preoccupation with rural sustainability.

As a vernacular form, farmyards employ a series of practices that are in their very nature, sustainable.