As a way of getting in touch with nature without compromising comfort, glamping—or glamorous camping—is gaining a foothold here and around the world. It’s a relatively new concept—by adding a touch of luxury, it’s possible to experience the great outdoors without having to endure the often harsh conditions of the natural world. It has become a popular option for those who like the idea of camping but don’t fancy going without their creature comforts.
Glamping is also the subject of a new exhibition at the Dowse Art Museum in Lower Hutt called On The Edge, which showcases the work of five architecture master’s students from Victoria.
The students’ year-long research thesis involved designing small glamping shelters at Ngā Pōtiki on the south Wairarapa coast and re-imagining the relationship between architecture and landscape. Each student focused on a different aspect of that relationship in their architectural designs, and in the process questioned how people engage with the wilderness.
Natasha Perkins and Simon Twose, both senior lecturers from Victoria’s School of Architecture, supervised the students and have co-curated the exhibition. Simon says the exhibition and accompanying book encompasses the year’s work, and provides an alternative take on the glamping concept. “If you’re expecting to simply see fancy tents, then this is quite different. They used the idea of glamping as a way of understanding architecture’s relationship to landscape—in some ways their designs are quite provocative.”
One of the students, Matthew King, says he used his glamping designs to explore ways to reconnect practical activities to nature. “Camping is traditionally associated with a practical, pared-back way of inhabiting the landscape, but I wanted to intensify the practical aspects and problematise them in an ironic way.”
The exhibition is organised into three sections. One shows the students’ process work and testing, another displays the printed theses and finished models, and the third shows the site and gives a sense of the scale of the landscape. The designs are planned to be shown in the Wairarapa in the near future.
Exhibition details:
On The Edge
The Dowse
45 Laings Road
Lower Hutt
The exhibition runs daily (10am to 5pm) until 19 April 2015.