"Learning (IN)flection"

Sean Obrien

"Learning (IN)flection"

Dwindling water supply, over populating and aggressive farming has left America’s heartland in a state of decay. What remains is a scarred landscape dotted with rusted steel structures that serve as reminders of man’s ambition. Learning (IN)flection is a rebirth of these forgotten structures both physically and symbolically. The spaces carry the memory of the past as students learn to rectify the future. By inflecting the structure and constructing an extension of the landscape, the steel that once stood in defiance of the topography now exists in harmony with it. Interactive surfaces arise challenging the senses that are normally muted in a typical school setting. Every surface addresses building and nature relationships. In time, the surrounding landscape naturally integrates itself with the steel reclaiming the ore it once provided.