The Elephant Archive
Junjie Fu, Assoc. AIA, and Zixiao Huang
“The proposition of the project to use the section as a major form giver is really interesting. To think about how you would observe elephants both on the ground level as well as from above, and beginning to think about, too, our own place on the earth as being subject to our perspective both physically and historically is powerful in this project.”
— Valerie Chang Greer, AIA
Nestled in Ban Ta Klang in Surin, Thailand, this project celebrates the profound bond between locals and their elephant companions. The village maintains an elephant graveyard with more than 100 tombs, but its impact is hindered by a fragmented layout reflecting individual mahouts’ relationships with their elephants. The project reimagines this space as an elephant archive, where the collective memories of the village can be enshrined. Inspired by the imprint of elephant footprints, the design intertwines the elephants’ essence with the earth itself to create tangible markers of the village’s history and weave a narrative of shared experiences. Over time, the space evolves into a repository of cherished memories, an underground forest, and a sanctuary for humans and nonhumans alike.