CONTROLLED COLLAPSE
Agricultural Wastelands can act as laboratories for experimentation in
restoring balance to unhealthy systems between man and nature. This project seeks to re-define our notions of place. The Salton Sea, an agricultural wasteland of accelerated change, will test the capacity for which people can build reciprocity with a terminal environment.
WYOMING
Colorado River Watershed
LOWER DIVISION STATES Total: 7,378,643 acre-feet (a.f.)
NEVADA
UTAH
Total: 241,437 a.f.
COLORADO
CALIFORNIA
Total: 4,356,839 a.f.
ARIZONA
Metropolitan Water District
Total: 2,780,376 a.f.
967,495 a.f.
Palo VerdeIrrigation District
1,180,000 a.f.
Imperial Irrigation District
2,679,356 a.f.
Coachella Valley Water District
322,730 a.f.
MEXICO
Total: 1,500,000 a.f.
Water that used to reach the Gulf of California has been completely diverted for the use of expanding suburbs. The price of water is growing as climate change continues to alter the face of the earth, especially the arid region of the west. Agencies with large sums of money are buying water right like tat of the Salton Sea to sustain their growth. With a lack of water inow the sea will dry out increasing the chances of pollutants becoming airborne.
NEW MEXICO
desert environment
LOS ANGELES
San Bernandino Mtns
cremation
White Water River
departure
San Jacinto Mtns
procession
Chocolate Mtns
Riverside County Imperial County
Proposed Site
Santa Rosa Mtns
cemetery overcrowding
Salton Sea
decrease of open space
111
overpopulation Alamo River
New River Imperial County
San Diego County
86
0 mi processional sequence to site_scale shifts
15 mi site context
3,429
3,429
scale of the windmills
scale of the desert
Residue of ashes still on hands Waiting in traffic for 2 hours Re-integrated back into reality scale of the agricultural plots
The vastness and awe of the desert is in its most dynamic state. The sunlight unveils the palette of colors that transform the desert, creating a religious experience
scale of the mountains
Point of arrival just before dawn
17 mile drive descent to the center point of the Salton Sea 153 miles
head on with the largest body of water in California
agriculture accounts for one fourth of the jobs in the imperial valley
scale of the city
164 miles
BORREGO SPRINGS_ 76miles 1hr 45mins
7:40am there is still two hours before sunrise, the clear skys of the desert reveal its extents as you reach the mid-point
scale of the valley
140 miles
130 miles
44,552
countless ‘green’ golf courses unfold across the desert
PALM SPRINGS_ 63miles 1hr 12mins
115 miles
100 miles
crossing the white water river
an anthropormorphic march of windmills occupy the landscape
Cremation Ceremony Ashes are divided amongst family members Depart Los Angeles at 6:10am
93 miles
descending of mountainous range/views blocked
ascending man made extrusion into mountainous range
moreno valley geological threshold
vastness and awe envelop the desert whole
80 miles
76 miles
303,871
70 miles
RIVERSIDE_ 115miles 2hrs
SAN BERNANDINO_ 115miles 2hrs 209,924
60 miles
ontario
pomona chino
diamond bar
west covina
walnut rowland heights
el momnte
geologic_psychologic thresholds
hacienda heights
montebello
10 miles
east los angeles
monterey park
Los Angeles is the most populous city in California and the second most in the U.S.
major surrounding cities_distances_populations
7.5 mi
scale of the sea
Arrive at 9:10am The most intriguing moment in this ritual process is not when the sun’s rays first touch the mountain but the instant just before when all of what will be creation hovers on the edge of emergence 9:30am 6:10am
9:30am
10:00am
11:00am
12:00pm