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77 MASSACHUSETTS AVE, Cambridge, MA 02139

https://libraries.mit.edu/exhibits/exhibit/shingles-nest/
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The Shingles Nest is a small pavilion installation that inhabits the Rotch Library and serves as a reading corner; visitors are invited to sit inside and enjoy the privacy and warmth of the wooden cocoon.

The project is based on the local mining of material waste streams and proposes a shingling system as an assembly strategy that could extend to the upcycling of any sheet material offcuts. The structure is a self-supporting shingle assembly composed of wooden planks of different sizes salvaged from the recycling stream of heavy-duty pallets on campus. The planks are cleaned, and the wood is re-valuated through traditional woodworking techniques. A computational approach is developed in conjunction with a digital fabrication strategy to compose and machine the shingle and connecting pieces.

The design presents an aesthetic of up-cycling leveraging the individual qualities of the stock’s elements to create vibrant textures. On the inside, the oiled planks create a warm interior with a subtle color pallet from different wood species. In stark contrast, the outside’s charred finishing provides the envelope with a rougher expression, while the engraving reveals the planks’ deformations and mark each of them with a unique pattern, blending together across the envelope in a rich textural effect.

The assembly’s development in its different parts is documented by a series of prototypes displayed in the glass cases. The Shingles Nest was developed in the graduate architecture studio titled Making Ingredients (4.154) taught by Professor Diego Pinochet and Professor Lavender Tessmer.

Designer and Curator: Tim Cousin

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