A full-scale house designed for future life on Mars is being built at Wapping Wharf in Bristol Harbourside. Part of ongoing public art project, Building a Martian House is being created in the square next to M Shed.
Originally conceived by local artists and Watershed Pervasive Media Studio residents Ella Good and Nicki Kent, the project has so far brought together space scientists, architects, engineers, designers and the public to explore how we live today and stimulate visions for new ways of living here on Earth and on Mars.
The house will open from August 17 with a three-month programme of workshops, talks and events for all ages. Ahead of that date the artists are inviting the people of Bristol to get involved and help co-design the interior.
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The house will be built as a blank canvas and the interiors team will work alongside the artists to design and make prototype objects to go inside. The artists and volunteers will think together about how to decorate the inside of the house and what objects might be inside.
Things volunteers make for the house might range from larger items like furniture, a low power shower or a kitchenette, to the smaller items of everyday living like Martian clothes, a toothbrush and toothpaste, or wallpaper.
The artists say they’ll be making things that are easy to repair, multi-functional and zero waste. The artists will pay for materials to make the interiors and say the project is about being resourceful so they and the volunteers will also source materials for free or recycled where possible.
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Volunteers will spend time in the Martian House, attend weekly meet-ups with the artists to discuss ideas, work on and develop the projects outside of the sessions, and design and make items for the interior of the house.
The first meet up for volunteers is August 13, then every Saturday until the end of October. The closing date for applications is midnight on July 30 and you can submit your application here.
Starting as an empty shell, the interior of the house will come to life as the artists explore with audiences what a new, sustainable culture might look like. The house will comprise two levels with the upper level designed to sit on the Martian landscape and made from a pressurised inflatable gold-coated foil, making it lightweight enough to be transported to Mars.
The lower level is designed to be built below the ground, so the Bristol prototype will be surrounded by a hoarding, printed with information about the project and illustrations from local artist, Andy Council. The space is designed to house two compact private bedroom ‘pods’; along with WC and shower, and an environment control and systems room with all of the life support systems powering the house.
This section of the interior will be co-designed with the public, and once the exhibit opens, provide a space for a programme of events, research and talks dedicated to re-thinking life on Earth through exploring the challenges of life on Mars.
A team led by world experts in extreme architecture Hugh Broughton Architects, working in partnership with design studio Pearce+, developed the design of the house. They have created a lightweight prototype building which could be easily transported to Mars whilst withstanding its inhospitable conditions and the real environmental challenges you would face there – such as average temperatures of -63C and exposure to galactic and cosmic radiation.
The team worked alongside scientific and engineering experts Professor Lucy Berthoud, Dr Bob Myhill and Professor James Norman from University of Bristol. A cohort of construction companies led by SCF Construct have generously donated their time and expertise to bring the project to life and funding has been provided by the Edward Marshall Trust.
Artists Ella Good and Nicki Kent said: “Considering how we might live on Mars helps us re-think every aspect of our lives here on Earth. Mars is a place where you’d have to live carefully and sustainably and so helps bring sharp focus on how we live today, and in particular our relationship with consumerism.
“Our ‘Martian House’ has been a real collaborative effort and it’s been incredible to see what we can make when all sorts of people use their imaginations and skills to work together. We are now thrilled to invite audiences to get involved for a second time and join our interiors team to practically imagine how things might work in a zero-waste environment.
"This might be creating fabrics, colours, art on the walls, or inventions for pedal powered washing machines, as well as all the little objects of everyday living. We hope our project shows that we can all have input into how we think about the future.”
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