Insect Saves Tree
#24. Insect Saves Tree
Installation of the Insect House to prevent cutting of trees, Recetas Urbanas, 2001
A single-person tree-inhabitation structure designed for rapid installation, anti-police protection, and summer ventilation, the Insect House was built in one night at the invitation of a group protesting the planned removal of trees along Alameda Avenue in Seville. Temporary and reversible guerrilla construction projects offer a way for citizens to quickly and significantly participate in urban planning. Santiago Cirugeda is an architect based in Seville who has proposed semi-legal strategies for housing and urban renovation under the name Recetas Urbanas, or “urban prescriptions,” since 1996. He inhabits gaps between laws, exploiting overlap and oversight to practice autonomous architecture.