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Introduction

Building with earth is the oldest method of construction in the world. Civilizations around the world have relied on earth, in various forms, as a readily available and durable building material. Today over half of the world’s population lives in earth structures. Of the various earth building techniques, rammed earth construction stands out as the most efficient, precise and long lasting. The method involves pouring moist soil into a wooden board form and continuously compressing the earth with a tampering device. Upon reaching a desired wall height, the board forms are removed and a solid earth wall is exposed. When done properly, a rammed earth wall is structurally as strong as hollow core concrete and timber frame walls. Additionally, using earth as a construction material is highly cost effective and has a remarkably low impact on the surrounding environment. The cost effective and rigorous yet simple process of ramming earth allows a group of motivated workers to expediently produce an entire structure. The meticulous labor involved in building a wall composed of rammed earth was celebrated as an honorable form of work by ancient civilizations and was perceived by Frank Lloyd Wright as a way to restore the welfare and self-esteem of the ordinary citizen. 

Earth Wall I

In October of 2010, I traveled with my design partner Cody Campanie to the Life Is Art Farm in Sonoma California to build a land art installation. The outcome of our trip to Sonoma was Earth Wall I (More pictures), which consisted of a rectangular rammed earth wall penetrated by an inhabitable wooden box. We selected to use rammed earth building due to its natural aesthetic qualities, low cost and minimal environmental impact. The formal simplicity of the sculpture allows the intrinsic material beauty of the wall to standout and thus celebrates ramming earth as a construction technique. The rigorous process of building Earth Wall I was deeply rewarding and solidified our conviction to explore rammed earth construction as a means of artistic expression.

Earth Wall II

Pontchartrain Vineyard in Covington La, has donated land for a second rammed earth sculpture. Building the sculpture will be an invaluable opportunity to further investigate rammed earth as a building technique and its capacity to produce unique sculptural installations.