Exodus

Studio Pierandrea Angius

Tutors Tina Tsagkaratou, Angel Tenorio

Team Xiangyu Zhai, Yuqi Xia, Yihan Shi, Yizhou Luo, Jiang Zhao

Exodus is an integrated project consisting of small nomad housing units which can adjust to variable environmental conditions in a self-sufficient and transformable manner.   

 We are faced with many challenges at present. Sustainable energy, the tiny house movement, and the use of recycled materials, connect with the four architectural concepts we explored in Exodus: mobility, services, self-reliance, hybridity and nomadic lifestyle. We chose to site our proposal on the Mongolian steppe, because of its complex and changeable climatic conditions.  

 The living space is divided into two levels, the temporary space in the gyroscope and the permanent space between the core and exterior shell. When the unit is mobile, approximately for two hours each day, people inhabit the gyroscope. For the remaining hours, during habitat mode, people occupy the permanent space, made up of different kinds of petals to support various activities: such as work, rest, recreation and others. 

In addition to being capable of converting from motivation and habitat mode, exterior shell also has the important task of merging. We used strong seasonal winds as a passive driving mode and a source of sustainable energy. To make this even more efficient, we added water wheel and a sail to the shell, so that when the wind blows, the structure can temporarily store energy which can propel the whole unit forward. To also achieve an active drive, we incorporated a pneumatic drum, which can push the spherical unit forward. 

When units of Exodus migrate seasonally, forming clusters on the grassland, we developed various groupings and connection modes. Similarly, to traditional nomadic tribes, we have four main gathering places for the unit migration, winter and summer camps, and spring and autumn stops during road migration. We devised four collective behaviours to deal with each of these scenarios.