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Celestial Movement of the Collective Memory
by
Morgan Mohr
Examining the Romani population as a case study of
nomadism, an analysis of celestial space and terrestrial mapping of cultural,
domestic, and workspaces will serve to ignite an understanding of how those who
continuously move construct collective memory spanning across nomadic
populations
Nomadism is a way humans exist within terrestrial space without upending the landscape they travel and simultaneously blend cultural, domestic, and work spaces into the structures in which they move. The terrain records moments of movement while the celestial documents and stores memories. Nomadism opens the boundaries of architecture away from an understanding of a fixed built environment and into a tool to understand the ever-moving space of the structure that follows nomads. Examining the Romani population as a case study of nomadism, an analysis of celestial space and terrestrial mapping of cultural, domestic, and workspaces will serve to ignite an understanding of how those who continuously move construct collective memory spanning across nomadic populations.
The Romani are a historically nomadic ethnic group that populate the entire globe, but are heavily located throughout Europe. After generations of enslavement, the Romani were emancipated in 1864, but the global attitude towards the population had already solidified. As time continues to press onwards so does the negativity and targeting of these nomads by global leaders and citizens alike. Despite experiencing constant backlash, the vibrant cultural identity of the Romani has not been lost within the margins. Identity is represented through domestic spaces, sites of gathering, and other cultural artifacts. Nomadism occurs through movement of bodies, the spaces occupied, shared experiences, and storytelling. The paths they travel, the places they camp, and the remnants as they move are all tangible and intangible artifacts that the architect has the tools to archive.
It’s taught that settled societies are more advanced, but we are once again seeing and being populations that are forced to rapidly move due to harsh climate change, to ensure safety and access to food, and to avoid political war and cultural tensions. As movement is the only option for many in our world, how can we document and learn from populations that choose to be nomadic? This mapping works to understand a community that experiences identity not necessarily from a tie to a place, but instead a shared cultural collective memory.