Ariundle Oakwood National Nature Reserve, Strontian, Acharacle PH36 4JB, West Highlands

6°42’47.3”N 5°32’54.5”W

This project is centred on the Scottish Rainforests and upon the elements that define it as a rainforest biome.  The climate, vegetation, animal life and the ecosystem of the biological community that has formed on the West coast of Scotland is in response to the regional climate and physical environment.  The presence of established flora such as Mosses, Lichens, Fungii, Ferns and Liverworts are primary species which are key for the Rainforest identity.

Rather than detracting and pillaging the landscape, my project aim is to highlight the biodiversity of the Rainforest, particularly these simple plant forms.

The existence of the Rainforest is dependant upon the mild temperate maritime climate which is found along Scotland’s West Coast and is characterised by high precipitation, high humidity and mild winter temperatures, which are sustained by the North Atlantic Drift and the Gulf Stream.  Within this narrow climatic threshold, these species of simple plant life form dense and interdependent systems that blur distinctions between surface, structure, and air thus producing a spatial condition defined by saturation and accumulation.

The project originated and developed from a recognition that Scottish Rainforests remain largely overlooked within both ecological discourse and public awareness. This absence prompted an investigative methodology grounded in immersion and direct engagement.  Having undertaking several fieldtrips to the Rainforest I was able to immerse myself in the environment to gain a deeper understanding of the biome and my research prioritised sensory and temporal experience with material proximity over abstract observation.

Utilising the landscape and scenic views from the valley as inspiration for developing the installation, I chose to create several structures from rammed earth that would flow within the landscape and capture the aesthetics of the horizon.  Researching the geology and soil profiles of the rainforest I chose to utilise local soil resources to create the structures as this would ensure a continuity of the physical environment, thus not introducing an inappropriate soil type, flora and fauna.

In this way, the project reframes the rainforest as a lived condition, where architecture acts not as an imposition, but as a mediator between body, climate, and the fragile ecologies that define this environment.