Avalanche by Matthew McCormick

Inherently out of place in the classically historic space, Avalanche was strategically situated to provoke profoundly personal reactions from each visitor that passed through: a designer’s interpretation of a suspended moment in time where we are faced with a mindful revelation of our own mortality. On entering, small groups of visitors found a lowly lit, deceptively reflective space, bringing a sense of entrapment and confusion around the uncertain pathway through. Grappling with the increasing darkness of the narrow, constricting corridor, visitors were urged to pause in a heightened sense of consciousness, as they toyed with the human instinct to find the safest route out. “Inspiration for this project was found in the role that human factors make in our decision-making on uncertain backcountry terrain,” said McCormick. “Avalanche can be seen as a poetic metaphor, meant to offer an opportunity for visitors to take pause between the darkness and the light – even for just a brief moment,” he adds. “We recognise that a critical mass is required to instigate societal change when it comes to the shifts in our environment – however this collective awareness has to start with the individual.” To achieve the amplified, reflective surface areas that evoked both compression and expansion from within, Avalanche employed Barrisol’s versatile material, which was stretched and moulded into precision pieces and organic forms. Supported by Barrisol Welch. Further support by the High Commission of Canada in the United Kingdom.