Anthro-, meaning humanoid, and -cene, meaning geological period, combine to form the word that describes the era we are living in. It is the era of the human, the anthropocene. To us, it has always been the era of the human, for we are self-centered and narcissistic, which we are becoming increasingly aware will be our downfall. But the anthropocene began for the earth when “humans began transforming the earth so that they are parallel to other geological forces and processes which have shaped the planet that we live on”1-long before we lived on it.
The anthropocene provokes us to challenge and reevaluate the way we interact with the earth. At the forefront of this conversation is the “assumption of an ontological distinction between human culture and nature...with the arrival of the Anthropocene, this division is de-ontologized; as such, the separation between nature and culture appears as an epistemological product mistakenly presumed as a given fact of being.” 2 Etienne Turpin reiterates this statement in a lecture describing humankind’s twisted and egotistical relationship with nature. At the Oxford Natural History Museum, you are able to touch the taxidermy so as to perpetuate the sense of human domination over the rest of the living creatures of the earth.1 An appalling example of our dictator esque reign over the planet is told by the story in the photograph above. A tiger is placed in a sanctuary so that people can come and see what a tiger looks like in its natural habitat. The perimeter of the “sanctuary” is lined with sensors so that if the tiger exceeds its boundaries, it will be killed and replaced with another tiger that was bred in China-for humans to come and see what a tiger looks like in its natural habitat.1 These acts are products of the barrier we have placed between ourselves and nature in order to maintain a feeling of control. The global crisis of climate change, a product of this misconception, has made it evident that we are not in control.
The conclusion here is not that humans are bad and are the cause for the end of the world-well not yet at least. That is the whole point-we need to rewrite our story while we still have time. The Anthropocene-now-is the time to redefine our relationship with nature. In fact, we are nature. We have separated ourselves so far from this fact that we have convinced ourselves that we are the rulers of nature rather than its creation. However, in our ability to create lies both our destruction and salvation. “Art, in its small way, influences the world by touching the conscience. Even architecture, a mere instance of form, in the field of action has a power and a responsibility-that of expressing the identity, desires, and deepest intentions of humankind...architecture can-it must-design and represent a different approach, one of coexistence and symbiosis with the biosphere.”5
“Architects want to follow the mainstream production of global merchandise without questioning the new reductionism that says we must consume to protect the planet. This is a total antagonism; in fact, it is an absurdity—over-consuming with a green attitude! And all without questioning our proximity or relationship to others, to other species, to the environment.” 3 We cannot simply slap a solar-powered, living-roof, rain-water-collecting bandaid on a building and call it green. As Francois Roche stated-it is absurd. Over-consuming is prominent in the world of cyberpunk-which should be taken as a warning of a high-tech, low quality way of life. We must take this opportunity to use technology as a tool rather than a weapon. An effort to tread more lightly in our travels on our planet is being made by the development of the hyperloop. Hyperloop travel would not only change the way we interact with the planet, but with each other as well. Potential travel speeds of 700+ miles per hour would open a gateway to a level of efficiency in energy, production, transportation, and trade that is unprecedented in our history, all while grinding the fossil fuel industry to a satisfying, screeching halt. The hyperloop may be the way we will travel into a post-anthropocene world-one where humankind and earth coexist. An architecture practice called JOA has already begun to imagine what a post-anthropocene world may look like. The motif of the ball was studied and utilized for its adaptability to sites and functions.4 Some of these functions include transparent solar panels, hanging gardens, air treatment systems, and rainwater collection, and recycling-not to mention they are floating high above the city skyline. All of the functions of the structure contribute to sustaining itself. Instead of relying on its surroundings, i.e. the earth, our future built environment must learn to live on its own. We as a species have become too reliant on the earth, and it is time we grow up and move out-or up.
However we picture the future built environment, one thing is certain-we must reimagine ourselves first. Etienne Turpin recounted the story of a Sumatran rhinoceros skull in his lecture for Graz Architecture. The skull was found discarded with the evidence of having been taxidermied. It had belonged to a military official to flaunt his power, but the horn of the beast was missing. Likely, it was sold to be snorted, as it is believed to enhance sexual performance in men. Turpin points out how toxic masculinity is being consumed by toxic masculinity. Currently, we are stuck in a world we created of toxic humanity. We are mutilating and consuming our planet and therefore ourselves, until we are discarded, forgotten, and extinct.
1 Etienne Turpin, Re-Designing the Anthropocene, Graz Architecture Lectures
2 John Palmesino “Architecture in the Anthropocene”, 2013, Etienne Turpin
3 Francois Roche, “Architecture in the Anthropocene”, 2013, Etienne Turpin
4 Jiayun Xu, JOA’s ‘post anthropocene’ series envisions architecture for future societies, 13 May 2020
5Mario Coppola, The role of architecture in the Anthropocene, Domus, 27 Nov 2018
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