Starting from the beginning of recorded human time, human beings have always been seeking shelter, especially during the cold winters. Looking at nature and how animals protect and build themselves their space, using their ideas or resources records a long way back. The interior space for us humans has mostly been used as shelter and or protection. An early way for shelter was to use mammoth hides (Fig.1). The record of this goes way back to around 40,000 BC. A way of carefully putting together mammoth bones to get what could be seen as the earliest version of a tent. The structure would have been heavy and difficult to make at the time due to mammoth bone weights of over 45kg.
Looking ahead to more tent-like structures as examples, Yurts are still used today but they started around 600 BC. It is a smart structure that is easier to assemble (Fig.2) and its round shape of it makes it more resistant to wind from any direction. The Yurts have also been used to protect us from any extreme weather. The round shape is a little bit more challenging to build an interior space with.
The Roman tents (Fig.3) are the first that has a rope to help support the main structure. They look lighter and easier to build. More similar to modern days tensile structures. The look of these is also closer to modern-day tents and starts to build on the idea this dissertation will explore further; lightweight structures inspired by a spider web and silk as a material.
It is interesting to see how tent-like structures have been developed and how they started. From such a heavy structure to the more modern days structures that are inspired by a spider web or silk as a material and where might it take us in the future?
Indoor camping or indoor shelter pods challenge the way we live in our interior spaces in this modern-day technological world.
Nowadays humans use tents because of the closure to nature but to still be protected from weather and wind. The connection to nature is a bit lost with our modern-day buildings. By bringing nature inside more and using these lightweight structures that are easy to change the look of humans can achieve a way to live inside and feel more connected to nature.
Fig.1 Mammoth hide and bone shelter replica.
Fig.2 Putting up walls. PHOTOGRAPH BY MATTHIEU PALEY, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
Fig.3 Roman military tent camp.
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