Paolo Soleri - History will judge this man kindly

I only recently became acquainted with the works of architect Paolo Soleri, but all that I've learned has thrilled me.

For nearly FORTY years, Paolo has been hard at work on Arcosanti, a miniature city-state dedicated to the ideals of maximizing human contact with nature and each other, while minimizing impact on the land around them.

From Wikipedia:
"Arcosanti is a planned community for 5,000 people. Under construction since 1970, Arcosanti is located near Cordes Junction, about 70 miles north of Phoenix and visible from Interstate I-17 in central Arizona. The project is based on Soleri's concept of "Arcology," architecture coherent with ecology. An arcology is a hyperdense city designed to maximize human interaction; maximize access to shared, cost-effective infrastructural services like water and sewage; minimize the use of energy, raw materials and land; reduce waste and environmental pollution; and allow interaction with the surrounding natural environment. Arcosanti is the prototype of the desert arcology.
Since 1970, over 6000 people have participated in Arcosanti's construction. Their international affiliation group is called the Arcosanti Arcology Network. As of 2005 Arcosanti stands an estimated 3% complete."



Boil it all down and this great man is designing beautiful, healthy spaces for humans. The best part of the Arcosanti Project is that ANYONE can be a part of it. Go to: http://www.arcosanti.org/, sign up for a workshop, buy a plane ticket (or better yet, caravan with friends in a veggie-oil car), and you too can learn the ways of building eco.


photo by Chris Ohlinger, General Manager of Cosanti Originals, Inc.



For further intel: wikipedia.org,
arcosanti.org