Jemima Brakspear

Initially working in a group, we began by tracing the lost industrial edges of the once productive port town of Leith, situated on Edinburgh’s northern coastal edge. My particular focus was the whaling trade, Leith being once the main gateway to the Arctic hunting waters. I was particularly drawn to the frugal philosophy of this process and how each and every part of the animal had to be used, right down to the blubber, bones and teeth. Leith is currently experiencing a period of major re-development and growth, with a high concentration of construction and demolition sites. I was struck by a continuity between this forgotten trade and current happenings in the area. In a sense, the dismantling of unwanted buildings is the contemporary whaling trade of today and it is important to apply the same frugal philosophy which demands each and every element of the structure is honoured by being given a secondary use. Therefore, the function of my intervention is an architectural salvage station composed of, and containing, recycled building materials. The assemblage of the structure is closely linked to sustainable principals of material reappropriation generating a circular economy and raising awareness of the wasteful construction industry.