Browsing by Author "Guo, Han"

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    Reassembling Moments in Aldershot Quarry, Burlington: A Narrative Outside of Time
    (University of Waterloo, 2025-04-23) Guo, Han
    Just as stardust reassembles into life, Earth’s materials are continuously broken down, transported, and reshaped, whether by natural forces or human intervention. Quarrying represents a moment of acceleration in this process, where human activity directs the pace and scale of material redistribution. However, this also brings disputes between industry, environmental conservation, and local communities about environmental degradation, community impact, and resource over-extraction. The thesis reads the quarry from the perspective of material movements, understanding extraction sites as dynamic landscapes where geological, biological, and human-driven forces intersect. Treating site rehabilitation as a media to reveal the material movements. This thesis asks, “What are the design principles for revealing the assembly moments and integrating human activities into natural processes on a post-extraction landscape?” Aldershot Quarry is selected as the site because it contains ecologically sensitive areas and water systems, is close to transportation, and is part of a growing urban area. The site is a Queenstone shale quarry, which includes two active sites and an undeveloped one. The thesis focuses on the West Quarry and the existing Meridian Brick plant as the basis for the design proposal. This thesis explores three design principles: “Expose”, “Encounter”, and “Unfinish”. Expose identifies key elements in the Aldershot Quarry. Encounter defines spaces where visitors can read and experience material reassembly moments, integrating public interaction with the site evolving. Unfinish challenges conventional rehabilitation by leaving natural and social forces to shape the site beyond the designer’s control. These principles guide the thesis structure as well, transitioning from the research of material movements in a quarry to the site analysis of Aldershot Quarry, developing a design proposal that applies these principles to a quarry rehabilitation project. The design proposal engages with the existing extraction and rehabilitation process, integrating site-specific interventions to reappear reassembly moments by revealing material movements and ecological succession. Factory as the symbol of site memory, and the core elements push the materials movements, are regenerated as a community centre to invite the public to build connections with the site. Water strategies expand former quarry ponds into wetlands, reinforcing the local hydrological connectivity and improving water quality. Quarry landforms are preserved and reassembled into walking and cycling trails, making the naked geological surface an interactive experience. Some areas are left intentionally unfinished, fostering passive ecological succession and allowing plant and habitat regeneration. Inspired by the Memorial Park of IBC and Don Valley Brickworks Park, this approach balances natural adaptation with human intervention. By defining quarries as dynamic landscapes, this thesis challenges the traditional dichotomy between industrial extraction and natural restoration. The design proposal locates Aldershot Quarry as a site where material movements, ecological processes, and public engagement are gathered. Instead of treating quarries as land scars that need to be erased, the research identifies their potential as evolving spaces that bridge industrial heritage, ecological renewal, and material reassembly.