This housing project for the residents of Liberty Square in Miami, Florida serves as a testament to the celebration of cultural heritage and community cohesion through design.
At its core, it seeks to emphasize the profound significance of embracing and preserving our cultural traditions. Drawing inspiration from a number of influences, I merged existing aesthetic elements with rich Caribbean folklore to craft a cityscape that integrates with local life while upholding a vibrant cultural narrative.
The schematic of the design portrays a residential structure elevated on stilts, adorned with a notable metallic skirt. The project’s inception found inspiration in the captivating Moko Jumbie stilt walkers, embodying their grace and elevation with a unique housing structure elevated on stilts. The house itself has a costume of its own, signifying the importance of the role that grand, ornate costumes play in celebrations like the Goombay Festival and Carnival. This construction method will aid in not only elevating cultural heritage and creating a space for people to gather and hold their own celebrations, but also as a safety method in the event of flooding as Miami has been recently found to be sinking.
