Student Work
1∕5
Title
Seed Vault + Museum
Project Description
Through the study of aggregate seeds within their natural containers, this project explores the form of a seedpod and how it preserves and shields its contents through suspended containment. This protective shell is translated into the design for new Seed Vault and Museum sited in the Natural Bridges National Monument in Utah. Serving as the new entrance to the national park, the building guides visitors along a series of cascading ‘natural’ bridges that extend over the Colorado River below. The museum, seed vault, laboratory, and outdoor amphitheatre create a winding circulation and switchback building form, leading users to trailheads to the park’s immense sandstone bridges. The museum displays and protects seeds of the species within the national park in suspended buildings, introducing visitors to the natural environment of the park before interacting with the park species themselves.