Cordwood Redux

Alex Timmer, Felipe Paez Gomez

UWM-School of Architecture & Urban Planning, 2023

Sawdust, Wood Shavings, Foam, Portland Cement, Plywood 

12’6” x 1’8” x 3’6”

Statement From The Artists:

Redux refers to the bringing back or restoration of an object of study. In cordwood redux, a version of the traditional cordwood construction or firewood stacking is reconstituted through composite portland cement and waste wood logs. The stack is organized by each log’s environmental impact, with the wood waste constituting a sequestering of carbon and the cement constituting an expenditure of carbon. The variable mixtures result in a gradation of color, tone, texture, and compressive strength as a result of the cement content. Reminiscent of firewood stacking techniques, traditional cord wood construction consists of short logs stacked and connected with mortar. The resourceful inventiveness of early practitioners was the result of a creative reuse of available material. Cordwood Redux doubles down the creative reuse of material to reconstitute the cordwood wall.