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Bound to antiquity,
the sod brick base ascends,
welcoming those,
where harmony extends.

Amid the blossoms,
linger as you wish.

Wood fins gently sway,
humming their soft refrain,
of Big Slough bird songs,
whispering from the summit.

Close your eyes and drift with the flow,
of wind through the grass,
of echoing hooves and chittering birds.

Find peace,
however you please.


                                      Kinetic sculpture.
                                      Respite for contemplation.
                                      A symbol of South Dakota.


























 

The Legendary Highway 14 Tower Design Competition asked participants to create an iconic observation tower in De Smet, South Dakota, USA. 

The Big Slough and Silver Lake in De Smet, South Dakota, form a vital ecosystem that supports diverse plant and animal life, offering habitats for wildlife. Similarly, the Ingalls Homestead, the preserved childhood home of Laura Ingalls Wilder, serves as a living history museum where visitors can experience pioneer life through hands-on activities. 
The town’s name honors Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, a Jesuit missionary known for his travels and work among Indigenous tribes in the 19th century. De Smet, often regarded as a peacemaker is said to have forged relationships with several Native groups. 

While his intentions are viewed by some as altruistic, his work was inextricably tied to the broader colonial project.








 










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A small town with a history that echoes the broader narrative of America's westward expansion and genocide of Indigenous populations, this region is home to (9) Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota cultures: Cheyenne River Sioux, Crow Creek Souix, Flandreau Santee Sioux, Lower Brule Sioux, Oglala Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, Sisseton Wahpeton, Standing Rock Sioux and Yankton Sioux.

The iconic 1892 photograph to the right outside Rougeville, Michigan, depicts a towering pile of bison skulls, depicting the mass extermination that reduced the bison population from an estimated 30–60 million to just 456 wild bison by the late 19th century. 

The Wolakota Buffalo Range, managed by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is dedicated to restoring buffalo to their ancestral lands. As one of the largest Native-managed buffalo herds in North America, the range supports environmental restoration, strengthens tribal food sovereignty, and reconnects the community with cultural traditions tied to buffalo. 

Click here to donate to their efforts.













 










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Sod house construction in South Dakota has roots in the ingenuity of Indigenous communities long before settlers arrived. When pioneers moved to the treeless Great Plains in the late 19th century, they adapted similar techniques, cutting thick blocks of prairie sod to construct insulated homes known as "soddies."

These structures provided protection from harsh weather but were prone to leaks and pests. The use of sod reflects a shared resourcefulness in utilizing the land, with settlers building on traditions established by Indigenous peoples to survive and adapt to the prairie environment.
















 










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Project Approach

The proposal seeks to reconcile conflicting narratives through a unifying architectural language: indiegenous communites, 

A gradually sloping sod brick plinth, constructed using historic methods, supports a series of pivoting wood fins programmed with the patterns of native bird songs.

Bird song, a unifying force, agnostic  of



Site Approach
Eastern orientation provides prime views to Big Slough, while rewarding early risers with a stunning dawn.







 

 











 
















Kinetic Fins

While studying opportunities for kinetic connections with the site, the simplest reference was clear: bird song.

An instrument mimicking bird songs is prone to scaring the birds away and disrupts birds who mistake the 
mimicking song as their own.Rather, the mechanism produces no tangible sound, save for a soft mechanical thud as the operable wood fins pivot to the percussive pattern of native bird songs.

In this example,  the bird song of the Sedge Wren was translated into a simple persussive score, consisting of eighth notes and eighth rests.


The score begins at the top of the 
structure, each fin weighted as a single “note”, pivoting independently of the others. As the score repeats down the structure, only fins represented in purple pivot, while the others rest.

 











 

 


























 


















































Interlocking Fins

The fins fit together at a shared joint, providing a visual continuity of this kinetic organism, while concealing the pivot hardware stashed behind them.

 











 

 




























Native Planting

In Pioneer Girl, Laura Ingalls Wilder describes a handful of flower species native to De Smet, including the Blue Thimble, Sweet William and Buffalo Bean.

The very same flowers that nourished Laura’s sense of wonder mingle with fellow native pollinators in the central garden bed.


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