Michael Earle is an interdiciplinary designer studying architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design

Inversion

4-month exhibition at the Museum of Outdoor Arts in Greenwood Village, CO

Date
Summer 2024
Site
Musuem of Outdoor Arts
Marjorie Park
Category Installation

Design Lead - Michael Earle
Technical Lead - August Ostrow
Fabrication - Josephine Clark & Christian Smith

Inversion invites viewers to reflect on the often-overlooked relationship between human life and the ground beneath us. Scientifically, it takes just six people walking a similar path to alter the ground's composition permanently. Thus, this piece is a contemplative exploration of the subtle yet profound impact we have on the world, and how the world, in turn, affects us.

Responding to the extensive building efforts in the Denver metro area, Inversion uses earth—typically disregarded as construction waste—as its primary material. Earthen beads are illuminated by motion-activated lights, symbolizing the often invisible yet enduring effects we have on our environment. These lights react to the viewer's presence, underscoring the idea that our interactions with the world leave a lasting, albeit intangible, mark.

True to its message, Inversion is fully biodegradable and will gradually return to its natural form during the course of its display, serving as a reminder of the cyclical and transient nature of both our actions and their consequences

Earth(Working)

Current studio project - Ongoing

Date
Fall 2024
Site
Downtown Hartford, CT

Category Architecture

A building that takes responsibility for itself - In progress.

This project is a rammed earth building constructed from materials excavated on-site, embodying a sustainable and self-sufficient architectural approach. By utilizing local earth, the structure blends seamlessly with the landscape and minimizes its environmental footprint. The building’s design maximizes thermal mass, passive energy strategies, and natural ventilation, reducing energy consumption and maintaining comfort year-round. Committed to environmental responsibility, the structure takes full ownership of its lifecycle, eventually returning to the earth with minimal impact, serving as a model for circular, eco-conscious architecture.

Encyclopedia of Ground

Featured in Major Survey Show (2023)
RISD Museum, Gelman Gallery Providence, RI

DateFall 2023
Category Sculpture

In this series, 41 ground samples were turned into stone beads. These stone beads are artifacts of a specific time and place. Each sample is numbered and paired with photo documentation of the area of its origin. To highlight the fishing community that is the foundation of New Bedford, these ground samples are woven together in a net form.

This area of New Bedford is undeveloped and underused. To an unassuming viewer, it could be considered a write-off. However, it is important to remember that all places have significance to someone or something . It is vital to handle this site with the utmost respect and care, as a stone to one is a gem to another.

TedxBrown - Mirage

Date
Spring 2024
SiteSoloman Hall
Brown University
Category Installation

Lobby design for TedxBrown Mirage Conference.

Envisioning Resilience

Featured in Designs for Living with Rising Seas (2024)
New Bedford Art Museum
New Bedford, MA

DateSpring 2023
Site
New Bedford,
MA
Category Speculative Masterplan

Collaborator - Olivia Boucher

A re-marshing strategy provides climate resilience in a mixed-use residential and commercial site. Phased planning allows for a new living machine and path network, making a connection with nature and remediation inevitable. This site strategy supports all scales of life in a dignified and respectful manner.

Economic and affordable marsh housing, composed of recycled concrete and lightweight wood, provides a private and comfortable means of retreat. Type A is a 780 square foot two bedroom, two bathroom dwelling. Type B is two units. Unit One is 450 square feet and has one bedroom and one bathroom. Unit Two is 330 square feet and has one bedroom and one bathroom. Strategic path cutouts provide private outdoor spaces, shielded by the growth of marsh vegetation.

The Nest

Date
Spring 2024
Site
Providence,
RI
Category Speculation (unfinished)

Can architecture support both humans and animals equally?

This project started with an exploration of the pigeon as it relates to the urban landscape. Through research, it was discovered that feral pigeons are a problem created by humans. Therefore, this structure seeks to be an intermediary between the two, a link that has long been forgotten.

Human programs occur at street level with community spaces, a cafe, and public bathrooms. The structure that provides rest and refuge for humans does so for pigeons using the same structural members. In this building, the structure that provides interior and exterior shading and comfort for humans curves up and around to provide resting and nesting places for pigeons. Foliage is strategically placed to grow through this structure, therefore making the built environment part of a larger established green network. This building is meant to blur the lines between humans and nature, while meeting the needs cof both.

mearle@risd.edu

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