Study Architecture 
ProPEL 
Author(s): Michael McClure & Onezieme Mouton
If water truly is the fundamental element for sustaining life, the wetlandscapes of the Chenier and the Deltaic Plains that were created by the hydraulic flow of the Mississippi River and span from southeast Texas across southern Louisiana are undoubtedly one of the most lively places on earth. Not only do these wetlandscapes host an abundance of wildlife and fisheries as well as generations of human cultural evolution, but the actual geographical wetlandscapes are also alive in a constant dynamic morphology. This dynamic geological landscape has served as the armature upon which several cultures have evolved upon for centuries. It is arguable that the more dynamic a landscape, the more rapid a culture (or species) will be forced to evolve. This being the case, perhaps if Darwin were able to access the evolution of the cultures that inhabit the Chenier and Deltaic Plains, he would be no less amazed by its uniqueness than he was by the animals of Galápagos. In addition to the natural forces that act on this particular wetlandscape (essentially the watershed of the Mississippi River which ranges from Montana to New York and reaches as far north as Albert, Canada) man has intervened on the same scale with an infrastructure of levees and hydraulic control structures in an attempt to control, or at least regulate, nature. The impetus for this massive undertaking (which has been going on for over two centuries) has always been fueled by a global economic pressure – first cotton, then oil. These manmade interventions have exacerbated the dynamic qualities of the Deltaic and Chenier Plains. This paper will present the process and results of educating architecture students in an immersive methodology that focuses on the interrelationships between the cultures that exist within the wetlandscapes of the Deltaic and Chenier Plains, and how the identities of these cultures are changing in unison with the landscape. The course research over the last four years has focused on the ‘delicate adjustment of outer and inner worlds’ of the wetlandscapes in southeast Texas and southern Louisiana. “Art requires a delicate adjustment of outer and inner worlds in such a way that, without changing their nature, they can be seen through each other. To know oneself is to know one’s region. It is also to know the world, and it is also, paradoxically, a form of exile from that world.” Flannery O’Connor The role of architects in the gulf coast area, as designers of buildings (objects,) has undeniably expanded since the recent hurricane disasters (and the current historical flooding.) The role of architects in designing (or redesigning) the systems in which we live, and that ultimately shape our identities, however, remains virtually non-existent. In an attempt to extend architecture into these concerns, we are educating our students (as well as ourselves, and the public,) with an exploratory course that attempts to focus specifically on a more complete understanding of the myriad of overlapping systems which surrounding us.
Volume Editors
Ikhlas Sabouni & Jorge Vanegas
