«To curl up belongs to the phenomenology of the verb to inhabit, and only those who have learned to do so can inhabit with intensity», says Bachelard in his book “The poetics of space“.

The landscape of Kaiafas constitutes a land, untouched by human hands, which sprawls along the bay of Kyparissia and acts as an important migratory station that hosts a plethora of birds. The pinewood, the lake, the beach, the sea, the sand dunes trigger a feeling of exploration and leads to wander in the vast landscape. During those saunters, the sound of birds chirping is there as a constant reminder of the inseparable relationship we have with nature.

Using the architecture as a tool, I will try to redefine this relationship between nature and man, between the natural and the artificial. The landscape, its occupancy by nature, the human body and the physical experience forms the procedure leading to my proposal.

A research is being carried out on how the birds inhabit the landscape. The concept of «curl up» is the connecting link between man and nature. How Bachelard’s ‘to curl up’ can be transcribed into something?

All this research is translated into an architectural proposal and creates a scenario of ephemeral inhabitation. The proposed structures are being placed in the pine forest, the lake, the dunes and the reeds that surround the Lake of Kaiafas. The chosen places were selected on the basis of observations gathered on the curling up - nesting areas of the birds in the region. These will serve as shelters for wanderers, travellers, hikers, naturists. Each one of them will be provided with equipment, in a form of a kit, which can then be assembled, and compose a chair or a lounger that can be placed in the larger architectural constructions, in special designed sockets.

The purpose of this project is the total immersion of the visitor in the natural enviroment making him experience the different landscapes of the lake, through his interaction with the different constructions, which are harmless to the natural landscape and fully adapted into it, while they allow nature to inhabit them and bond with them, forming one inseparable entity.