George John Otto Goldsmith
The projects thesis explores ideas of exposing the unseen information stored within the islandscape of Orkney and
the amplification nature and historical knowledge in the landscape.
Scapa Flow is the second largest natural harbour in the world and its sea-bed is littered with thousands of sites of
historical interest. The sea located there is perfect for wave power generation – never too choppy – rarely too calm.
However, due to the significant number of historical artefacts that sit on the ocean floor the area is currently deemed
too significant a location to be disturbed by infrastructure.
The project suggests a way of combining a museum and habitation with the need to generate renewable energy in
order to help preserve the memory of these significant sites and create renewable energy.
Wave power generators are strategically floated above sites of historical importance in Scapa Flow and are combined
with sensors and projectors which monitor and display the historical sites. Located around projections onto the
surface of the sea is a programme of a museum and hotel which are all accessed by boat.
The speculative proposal puts forward the idea that the exhibition of historical knowledge in-situ is superior to the
removal of items from their context.
