GNAR-LAB
Academic, Undergraduate 3 Architecture Studio
Chad Connery’s Inter Situ Studio
The Laboratory for Generative Acer negundo Architectural Research (GNAR-Lab) is a facility dedicated to the growth and harvest of Manitoba Maple trees for use in the built environment. GNAR-Lab explores the structural and environmental possibilities of using geometric tree forms in architecture. Unlike the sturdier, genus-sharing Acer saccharum, Acer negundo is a brittle species. Weak but fastgrowing, this abundant native tree holds unique opportunities for architecture. Understanding the strengths of this ‘weed’ tree led to the development of a new structural system. A network of unique tree forms redirect force to prevent individual failures.
The cultivation of these tree forms follows a coppicing protocol in which each diverging shoot produces a unique structural member designed by the lab. A catalogue of different tree forms is achieved through bracing, shaping, and grafting techniques performed by researchers.
Located at the mouth of the Seine River, the riparian conditions of the site serve these quick-growing maples well. Following the development of GNAR-Lab, the unused lot of 91 Archibald Street transforms into an unparalleled, peculiar orchard of odd fruit.
This project is a narration of the growth of an institution dedicated to minimizing waste; learning to innovate, GNAR-Lab speaks the importance of using what we have.