KURKKU FIELDS

クルックフィールズ

KURKKU FIELDS is a project that explores the possibilities of a new way of farming, located on 30ha of land in Kisarazu, Chiba. We worked on the masterplan, regional planning support, development design, landscape design and the design of multiple buildings on site.

CREATING A NEW FORM OF ARCHITECTURE

KURKKU FIELDS began with the idea of creating a new platform to enable various agricultural explorations. The terraced landscape is made up of :

Agricultural Factory : to support a steady supply of organic produce back to the city
Edible Garden : where visitors could experiment and become familiar with the farming process
Bricolage Workshop : where new ideas can be conceived, tried and tested every day out in the open

ARRANGING THE SHAPE OF THE EARTH

Our approach to the landscape began by making considered adjustments to the landform, tree conditions and water flow across the entire 30ha site. In order to draw new lines in the land, we used earthworks to take measures against damage from animals and erosion. Earthworks help to define territories across the site, spaces where you can feel the outlines of the terrain surround you. In addition, by forming the land into terraced rice fields, the flow of water could be controlled throughout the venue.

WATERFLOW THAT CONNECTS THE ARCHITECTURE TO THE LAND

Water is the first principle of the environment in which we live. Across the site, the terrain is shaped by the history of water flow, from the top of the hills to the central pond below. We aimed to create a response to this flow, a form that exists somewhere between landscape and architecture. With the support of permaculturalist Shinji Yotsui, we designed a bio-geo filter system as the axis of the masterplan. Our approach incorporates the quality of time, a layer of slowness that filters across the site, and a rhythm produced by the water purification cycle.

HUMAN SCALE CIVIL ENGINEERING

The shape of the earthworks and retaining walls throughout the site were designed to create new scales and territories as a way to occupy the land. Each wall was built by staff and collaborators in a series of workshops, as we developed a scale of engineering that was made by hand: a tool for us to occupy the landscape.

AN EXPERIMENTAL SITE FOR A FUTURE SOCIETY

The landscape design creates a sequence of territories and flows throughout the site in response to the new agricultural master plan. The architecture design provides a base for living in the landscape. Our entire approach was aiming for the unification of multiple resources, as a way, to create a place that can be considered an experimental site for a future society.