This Land
Six Major Land Uses of the United States Graphic representation of major land uses in the United States in acreage
How To See Land The landscapes and built environments of the United States are sometimes more clear to distinguish than others. While geographically these landscapes connect together like a jigsaw puzzle, the connection, or rather relationship, between the pieces layers of socioeconomic troubles and the historical and cultural erasure are hidden or intentionally overlooked. The rural and agricultural landscape serves as a looking glass to see these issues. While the two or not always intertwined, they pose the question of why they often are.
69 Million Acres
69 Million Acres
654 Million Acres
392 Million Acres
*Land use map does not include Alaska and Hawaii in acreage Data compiled from USDA 2012 Land Use Census Report
GRASSLAND PASTURE/ RANGELAND
169 Million Acres
539 Million Acres
FOREST-USE LAND Grazed Forests Unprotected forest Timberland
CROPLAND Land planted for crops Crops for pasture Idled cropland
SPECIAL USES National Parks Wildlife Areas Highways Railroads
MISCELLANEOUS Cemeteries Gold courses Marshes Deserts
URBAN LAND
6.3 Million Farms
1930
2.2 Million Farms
2019
F
arm: Any place that, during a given year, produced and sold— or normally would have produced and sold—at least $1,000 of agricultural products.
F
Family Farm: Any farm organized as a sole proprietorship, partnership, or family corporation. Family farms exclude farms organized as non family corporations or cooperatives, as well as farms with hired managers. USDA Classification
Small Family Farms 1,812,428 <$350,000
Mid-size Family Farms 111,486 $350,000 and $999,999
Large Family Farms 50,043 $1,000,000+
Very Large Family Farms 5,420 $5,000,000+
98%
2,204,792 farms in the U.S.
are considered family farms.
5.5
2.1
2018 Agricultural Research Survey
89.7
Land Operated
12.4
21.1
47.7 45.9 21.0
20.6
Value of Production
11.7
19.6
Number of Farms
2.7
Small Family Farms Medium Family Farms Large-Scale Family Farms Non-family Farms
800 700 600
746
Median Household Income by Farm Type 2018 Median self-employment income in U.S. households $86,401 (2018) Median income in all U.S. households $63,179 (2018)
500 400
335
300 167
200 100 100
53
Retirement
90
72
47
Off-farm Occupation
Low Sales
Small Family Farms
Moderate Sales
Mid-size Family Farms
Large
Very Large
Large Scale Family Farms
All farms
Existing in an industrialized society, agriculture is just another field that invites new growth and advancement through mechanization. Unable to follow pursuit are the endless seas of crumbling silos, roofless barnes and overgrown pastures across the country; small family farms. Furthermore the inability for generational family farms to stay afloat lies within the power and commoditization of agriculture by large corporations. The relationship of commerce and community that was held together by small family farms can no longer survive without adaptation. The stewardship and husbandry on family farms disappears when there is no longer a need to occupy the land being cultivated, furthermore when the economic gain becomes an economic loss. Instead, the symbiotic relationship that exists between people, agriculture and industrialization now results in the abandonment of rural communities and its people. Rural today means predominantly agriculturally and economically distressed. One answer is to blend urban and rural characteristics through a design that is in harmony with the land.
IO AT IZ AL RI ST E DU UR IN F LT O CU RI
AG
N
N IO AT N LIZ IO AT IA EC NIZ ION T SP A CH IDA N ME OL ATIO NS TR CO EN NC CO
Competition + Parasitism
Competition + Parasitism
Mutualism
The silo is the skyscraper of rural America, breaking the horizontal of the cultivated landscape. It gently redirects oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gaze away from the horizon and up towards the sky.
“ The Signal of the Silo” And whether made of concrete, or stave, or iron, or tile, Or woods of all creation, from up Maine ways to the Nile, Or whether concrete fellers get the local upper hand,
God bless ‘em –they’re all silos, for the better of the land. A munch of tasty silage, makes the dairy records grow; Who gives a hand for feed bills and a winter full of snow
The herd is plump as butter – and if folks have cause to thank It’s because each farmer’s silos is a sort o’ savings bank -W. Livingston Larned
Nature
Habitat
Artifact
System
Problem
Wealth
Ideology
History
Place
Aesthetic
Strangemaking Make the familiar unfamiliar so that we see it more vividly
Hanover County, VA
Richmond, VA
Pamunkey River
PROGRAM: Existing Structures The Main Dwelling A passage of time and space represented through the physical structures, new and old, and to symbolize the traditional practice and generational stewardship. • Phase One House for current farmer/manager • Phase Two (new structure) House for retired farmer/generation Tenet Dwelling(s) Spaces serving as temporary and permanent housing for farmers learning the practice, artisans in search of a liberating and new environment, or visitors curious in the process of agricultural practices and different methods of cultivation. The Dairy Barn A transformed space that remains to serve as a testament to the original functions and architecture of a dairy cattle barn. The introduced program offers flexibility to the building with new retrofitted spaces. • Offices/Studios • Gallery • Historical + Cultural Center Community Garden + Market Spaces A shared community garden and farmers market provides an open public space for gatherings.