ABSTRACT
The wall, as constructed, is 519.5mm thick, plus or minus the irregularities of flagstone. The wall, as constructed, is conceptually and physically ambiguous. The construction of this wall raised a question about recommendations, repeatedly made to the architectural profession, that precise instructions made in advance of construction should promise certainty, and, in turn, assure quality. In 1812, a Parliamentary Select Committee critiqued architect James Wyatt for ‘loose and inaccurate’ instructions at Somerset House and the Houses of Parliament and recommended that ‘precise arrangements should be made’ to guarantee the cost and quality of publicly funded works. The flagstone which made up the walls, roofing and flooring had been quarried from easily split layers from exposed beds on the coastline. The ruins of flagstone walls were a compelling starting point for our architectural intent. In celebrating the efficiency of the timber kit, we had not accounted for the deviation of the slow rebuilding of the flagstone wall.
