WINNER - PRIX DE LA FONDATION HABITAT ‘67
Description:
A Tribute to John Hejduk - design four houses on a garden city suburban block.
Narrative:
Akahi and Ala married with the best of intentions and had children. Their family was unremarkable - I’m sure you know one just like them. They lived in a regular house and had regular jobs and a dog.
The family had lived for some time without incident when a stranger came to live next door, and knowing what was expected, Ala and Akahi invited their new neighbour into their house. The stranger whispered to the woman and she was fifilled with doubt. Then the stranger charmed the man and he became aware of his power. When the stranger left them, the door closed unnoticed.
Now one sat alone, motionless with anxitey, tangled in fear. Upstairs, the other stood before the bathroom mirror, enamored with its reflflection. As Fear and Id took root, its creeping arms grew to fifill the house until - crack! - it ruptured, revealing the tangled web within.
One, now Ala lives in a dark cocoon woven out of the clinging strands of fear, while Akahi resides in a tower of self absorbtion fashioned from the cannibalized remains of their former home and tethered with ropes of self involvement. Their children are still living within the broken house and swing like monkeys through their parents’ stringy legacy.
2008
