a bird-watching observatory
Pape Nature Park, Latvia
Type | Competition
Client | Pasaules Dabas Fonds in association with WWF
Contract Value | £150,000
Status | Unbuilt
Collaboration | Ornithologist + Conservation Biologist Mauricio Alvarez
This bird-watching observatory is an integral component of the Natural Process Path within Pape Nature Park. The park is built using local knowledge and technology, natural materials, and pays tribute to the local heritage of the site and its species.
The Pape Nature Park deserves a bird observatory that is an iconic tribute to bird flight. Our proposal allows visitors to see the bird observatory from across the Natural Process Path. The design of the observatory is an homage to the motion of a bird’s wing. This is why the bird observatory at Pape Nature Park has been called Lidojumā uz Papes Ezeu - The Pape Flight.
The proposed observatory uses reed thatched roofing which
is a local material that can be installed and maintained by local craftsmen. The Pape Flight has a strong focus on local heritage and skills training. Young people are trained by local craftsmen to build reed-thatch roofing. The programme continues through the lifecycle of the observatory and every 7 years when the reed is replaced.
This millennium-old technique of thatching is highly weather-resistant and conducive to bird nesting. The proposed design is sculptural and pushes the boundaries of how one can use old techniques in new ways.
