• • 06 June 2016
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  •  Edwin Seda
• Faculty Years , Videos , Film , Opinion , Selected Works , Editor's Choice ,

Jaco Jonker smiles when I ask him how his thesis should be read, almost as if it is an obvious allusion to further clarify that it simply evokes the element of reason, the idea that maybe you might read it wrong. And then he hands me the film, and says "This is For the People of the forest". Together with his final year thesis, there is an element of somewhat hidden conclusions, transitioning ideas and a paradigm shift in how final year thesis for students of architecture in Africa are pursuing the idea of thought, of problem solving...

This document, before anything else, is intended to be read like a graphic novel that illustrates allegorically my perception of the dynamic between two fundamental forces of creation - technology and nature (also known as “the chisel” and “the gene”, or analysis and synthesis). Through exploring the atmospheric medium of painting, both on traditional media and in digital form. it tells the story of the proposed growth and proliferation of new plantations of pine forests in the context of a place called “Neo-Johannesburg” through the " ctional story of woman named Red- who works in a section of the government called the “Ministry of Terraformation”.

The tale of Red in essence, forms my major design portfolio - the events of her life in effect becomes a manual for how cities and individuals can terraform, and shape their immediate topographies - even in densely populated cities - by simply taking advantage of the tipping point, and strategically holding a much longer view on ecology, science, and urbanity. In Red’s reality, I painted an imaginative future Johannesburg that has become a barren wasteland.

Resources are scarce, and people are exposed to the elements. Fierce, frequent, and toxic dust storms assault the city. As a scientist working within
the Ministry of Terraformation, Red is tasked with understanding why and how the environment of Johannesburg has become so inhospitable, and what could be done. But before Red can ascertain the exact mechanism causing the severe sandstorms and respiratory health problems of the community, an event occurs which threatens the lives of everyone she knows, including herself.

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    © Faculty Years The Plantation By Jaco Jonker For...

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    © Faculty Years The Plantation By Jaco Jonker For...

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    © Faculty-Years-The-Plantation-By-Jaco-Jonker-For...

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    © Faculty Years The Plantation By Jaco Jonker For...

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    © Faculty Years The Plantation By Jaco Jonker For...