MoD presents ‘Architecture in Harmony with Nature’

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On Saturday, Nov. 12, the Museum of Dufferin will open its newest exhibition, Architecture in Harmony with Nature, featuring a selection of projects from award-winning Czech architect Martin Rajniš.

Incorporating historic images from the Museum of Dufferin’s Archival Collection, the exhibition explores how modern architecture and traditional construction materials can work together to be in harmony with nature.

Rajniš, the well-known Czech architect and the leading figure behind a small architecture firm Hut Architecktury Martin Rajniš (HAMR), which translates to Guild of Architecture, has won many awards throughout his career, including the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture in 2014.

In 1995, Rajniš and his team began studying, exploring, and testing new ways to use wood in construction. Wood is relatively inexpensive, flexible, and easy to size and connect. Combined with steel details, glass, and modern digital technology, Rajniš and his team create buildings that refer to “natural architecture.”

“If we seek a common speech with all people on the planet, if we want contemporary architecture to be accessible and communicable to all, the logical point of departure is based on the principles of nature,” Martin said. “Natural architecture is not the one that is romantic in style or mimicking free forms observed in the natural world but the one that is respecting laws of nature.”

Wooden structures can last for 100 or more years, making wood a popular choice of building material both historically and today.

“We believe this exhibition will be very interesting for people who are environmentally conscious and also inspirational for all residents living in the rural areas,” said show organizer Jan Benda, a fellow Czech architect and friend. “It may be appealing to builders, carpenters, structural engineers and other professionals who wants to meet present environmental challenges. This wood construction technology may influence the way we are using and perceiving wood. It may also shift our expectations how individual houses, barns or public buildings should look like. Whole countryside may eventually change its appearance reflecting 21st Century rural lifestyle.”

The exhibit will be on display in the Silo Gallery at the Museum of Dufferin from Nov. 12 to Jan. 28. An opening reception will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Nov. 12. Admission will be by donation during the opening reception.

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