Dancing in the Mud
(A review of the "Cob and Sacred Space" workshop held June 18-19, 2005
in Talent, Oregon, USA, sponsored by House Alive -- by M. Thorla and
pacificnw [at] druidnetwork [dot] org( Aigeann))
How many of you always wanted to design and build your own home, but were been intimidated by the myriad of skills and equipment required in such a massive project? Not to mention the cost. If so, it is time you were introduced to "cob".
What is cob?
Some jokingly refer to it as the building of a mud hut, but that’s essentially what it is. It’s a building material comprised of clay, sand, water and straw. The clay is the sticky glue, the sand gives it structure, and the straw gives it strength. This is mixed in small batches using bare feet until the desired consistency is achieved. You use this mixture to essentially sculpt your structure.
Since it’s mixed in small batches, and applied in loaf-shaped “cobs”, small enough to toss along an assembly line, you don’t need a whole work crew, or heavy equipment. You build primarily with what you have on site, and it stays on site, making it very economically, as well as ecologically, sound. It’s incredibly manageable. When wet, cob is pliable and sculptable; and once dry, cob is incredibly strong with fine insulating and fireproof qualities.
Building a project with cob is a slow, creative process involving your entire body in the physical labor, as well as your mind and your spirit. It frees you to really become a part of the surroundings, the place you’re building. Your structure becomes a living, growing artistic creation in itself. Truly rising from the earth where it eventually stands.
There are many health benefits to working with cob as well. The clay draws toxins out of your body, and the action of mixing the cob acts as a reflexology treatment for your feet.
Cob building workshops are normally a week or more, in order to cover all the details involved in building a cob structure. This abbreviated and specialized 2-day workshop went through the basics regarding the best straw and similar substances for specific uses, how to compensate for the less than ideal clay that you may find for use on your own property, the different mixtures for different uses, do’s and don't’s of building walls, trimming and finish plastering. This seminar also touched on the topics of wiring to code, preparing the cob walls for door and window frames, appropriate roofs and roofing material. Additionally, the discussions regarding the finding and using of recycled materials including how to create virtually earthquake proof foundations out of "urbanite", creating windows from broken panes or even glass jugs, building your own doors from used lumber along with what logs work best for the rafters makes this the ultimate earth-friendly shelter.
Cob is often used in combination and in conjunction with other “alternative” building techniques such as cord wood and straw bale.
The other half of the workshop was the integration of Sacred Geometry into your building plans. Also referred to as the Golden Mean or Golden Proportion, Sacred Geometry is the mathematical relationship of proportions. Shapes following this relationship are pleasing to the eye in Western Cultures and are reflected all around us. Examples in Nature include the human fetus, petals on flowers, snail shells, crystals, the number of needles in a bundle on a pine branch, as well as the structure of planetary systems, etc.
In summary, even after just taking this very abbreviated weekend workshop, you will feel confident about building a cob structure all by yourself. How can one be any more self sufficient than having the knowledge of how to create a permanent structure for yourself?
A special thanks goes to Coenraad Rogmans, Lead Instructor, House Alive.
For more information about Cob, please feel free to review the following websites:
http://www.housealive.org/http://www.cobcottage.com/http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/http://www.cobworkshops.org/And for your personal library:
The Hand-Sculpted House: A Philosophical and Practical Guide to Building a Cob Cottage (The Real Goods Solar Living Book) by Ianto Evans, et al, ISBN: 1890132349
A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science by Michael S. Schneider, ISBN: 0060926716
The best friend of earth of man is the tree. When we use the
tree respectfully and economically, we have one of the greatest resources
on the earth.
- Frank Lloyd Wright
