Project description

The project is an engagement of the constantly shifting waters of the Skaftá River with the surrounding landscapes that are evolving due to the natural processes of the river and the effects of climate change on the Vatnajökull glacier.

Iceland, a country on the southern edge of the Arctic Circle is largely covered by glacial ice and remote farmers. At first glance, it seems to be beautiful and untouched, but this does not hold true. These places are impacted by the capitalists and their anthropogenic activities. This can be seen in the faraway and uninhabited Riverland territory of the Skaftá River in the central highlands of Iceland.

The project follows an exploration of the complex hydrological, political and social systems through understanding the indigenous philosophies of the Icelandic farmers to design a matrix of micro-habitats for humans and non-humans which is part of a community, called Ská-vatn on the banks of the outwash plains of Skaftá river, in the highlands of Skaftárdalur.

The design proposal for Ská-vatn community is set at speculation on the landscape future of the river’s changing wet and dry timeframes for 200 years which is divided into landscape interventions (neighbourhoods) and a proposed community lifestyle practiced in these neighbourhoods through the use of simple and uncomplicated techniques that binds the river and community together. This community can be seen as a form of political engagement, or a social movement. It is a way of ‘slow activism’ against the proposal of damming the Skaftá river water for hydroelectricity production. Additionally, the proposal advocates the importance and fragility of the waters of River Skaftá in everyday living. It is a development and adoption of a situated lifestyle where the humans, non-humans, and natural elements come together in a symbiotic relationship.

Skaftá’s territory

The territory through the lens of water, Skaftárdalur valley is carved by the flowing channels of the glacial river Skaftá and its surrounding landscapes on the South-Western edge of the Vatnajökull glacier. The landscapes of the valley are sculpted through the frequent occurrences of flooding events and volcanic eruptions. 

Skafta River is a glacial and spring-fed river originating from the western side of Vatnajökull with the main source being the glacial meltwater of Skaftárjökull at Vatnajökull Glacier and spring water from Lake Langasjór. 

It flows southwest along the eastern borders of the Fögrufjöll mountains over a level fluvial plain. All along this route, the river runs parallel to the Lakagígar craters, turning sharply south into the lowlands of the valley transporting glacial and spring-fed water before splitting into 3 branches and cascading into the Ocean.

plan
Changes in dynamics of Skafta river over 200 years
Traces of the flowing river

Iceland can be identified as two zones land and water. Glaciers and rivers are the main protagonists in delivering the landscape of these barren plains. They are the dominant characters and hold a special importance in shaping of the landscape. Without the white weaving watercourses and creaky trickling of these rivers, the dark gloomy Sandurs lose their beauty and charm in the landscape.

Skaftá River is one such river in the Southern part of Iceland that originates from the Vatnajökull glacier. Vatnajökull, Langisjór lake, and Skaftá River are all interconnected to each other. Vatnajökull is the source, its one unified whole from which the water flows all the way down to the ocean.

Traces of Skafta-Speculated depiction of territory of wetness carved by the Skaftá river in year 2023 (present) and 2223 (future) in the highland transect of Skaftárdalur Valley and surrounding landscape elements.
Sections 2023, 2123, 2223
Ská-vatn: Icelandic farmers community of Skaftá

Ská-vatn is a form of an intentional community that is proposed as a social movement advocating a situated lifestyle. Situated in the sense of creating a new form of community, radically different from the existing mainstream industrial capitalist-dominated community that exploits the use of water in the hydropower plants setup on the rivers in Iceland. Secondly, it is a way of manifesting the importance of rivers and their consequent habitats (like outwash plains, lakes, wetlands, and river-edge grasslands) to a larger community of people in Iceland. 

The design proposal for the community is adopted from the local daily practices that the neighbouring villages and farms follow. For this purpose, the community is segregated into four major neighbourhoods: Stakafell grasslands, Hálsar Lake observatories, Skaftá dunes, and Laki nests. All these neighbourhoods look into the different micro conditions and habitats of the wider landscape designed by the flowing water and sediments of the Skaftá River. 

Site plan
Ská-vatn community: Proposed plan with its four neighbourhoods (Hálsar Lake Observatories, Stakafell Grasslands, Skaftá dunes and Laki Nests).
Managed grasslands as a ‘lifestyle’

Stakafell grasslands neighbourhood comprises maintained grasslands and housing modules for the farmers. The idea behind this neighbourhood is to create a situated lifestyle for the farmers where they employ their indigenous skills of building and sustainable methods to work with the grasslands in a symbiotic relationship. 

The development of this neighbourhood takes place in 3 phases divided into 3 timeframes- Phase 1(2023-2073), Phase 2 (2073-2173) and Phase 3 (2173-2223). The neighbourhood develops as a temporary space for the farmers to work as nomads on the existing grass meadows. With time and changing conditions of the landscape, this idea gets developed in creating a permanent neighbourhood as part of the Ska-vatn community. 

Lake observatories as ‘new habitats’

The area is speculated to evolve into an ecologically rich habitat in 200 years. The present lakes are a result of the flowing waters of Skafta River around the undulating hills of Halsar and volcanic eruptions from the past. This neighbourhood is composed of a symbiotic relationship between different communities, humans interacting with the algae that are developing in the lakes for making new materials. The algae feed on the micro-organisms that are habiting in the lava rocks of the lake bed.



The speculated landscape that develops in this area also functions along with other neighbourhoods by exchanging raw materials for construction purposes. 

lake observatories plans
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