Snort: Difference between revisions
FaffingFia (talk | contribs) changed photo formatting |
FaffingFia (talk | contribs) Added information on Documentation |
||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
=== Notebook === | === Notebook === | ||
Fia | Fia keeps a notebook (Feb 2nd-present) to write about the experience. In it they describe their building process, draw real and hypothetical maps of the structure, write about the Snort's meaning and take notes on artistic inspiration (including conversations with peers and with professors) and plan for future snow architecture on campus. | ||
== Artwork == | == Artwork == | ||
Revision as of 20:16, 28 May 2026
The Snow Fort (Snort) was a large quinzhee (snow cave) built by Fia Marrison, Cormac, Etta, Quin, and other friends on the Noyes Circle(Nircle) in the winter of 2025-2026. In its later stages it contained four chambers and an outdoor courtyard, with various connecting tunnels.
Structure
The Snort underwent many changes, which can be categorized into three main stages. These stages were primarily characterized by snowfall events. In December, the first two chambers were built. During winter break, the Snort melted to
Building
Tools
The initial pile of snow for the Snort was shoveled with one plastic shovel that Fia and Asher went on the bus to buy at Addams on the first day that it snowed, and various large shovels borrowed from facilities. The first chamber of the Snort was tunneled out with gloved hands and a frying pan from Noyes. After the majority of the second chamber was built, the builders used a metal shovel and the ice pick from the Outing Club. After winter break, Fia brought two more small metal shovels and two big plastic ones. Later the builders also used a large plastic shovel (with a metal edge) from the outing club.
In December and in March Members of Vassar's Grounds team used snow plows to give extra life to the Snort.
Time
According to Fia's spreadsheet schedule, the group spent about 32 hours on the Snort in December, 41 hours in January, 24 hours in February and 2 hours in March working on the Snort.
Technique
We shoveled naturally fallen snow from the Nircle into a pile. We allowed it to sinter, and then hollowed the pile out, putting the spoil on top to increase the height of the cave. To maintain structural stability and safety, upon reaching certain chamber sizes, we tunneled new chambers. For the construction of the first two chambers, there was fairly dense and sticky snow, so many builders made large snowballs (inspired by the snocks by the Deece) to incorporate distant snow to the mass of the pile.
Community Engagement
Many people collaborated on building the Snort. Fia, Cormac, Quin, Etta, Sophia, and Reave were the main consistent builders. Other collaborators included: Xander, Melody, Asher, Valentin, Parker (as secretary), Rachel, Este, Mari, Ziva and others who just came for an hour or so.
Fia also collaborated with two members of the grounds team, Bernardo and Jaime, to plow snow to give the Snort some more life, and to make a small snow structure by the preschool Wimpfheimer.
Starting March ? there was a guestbook in the Snort that people could write notes in. It is included in this folder: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1j7c9dL2GSkMwLjVxsq7oWwgfXyc6uA2j
Documentation
Media
The Snort was featured on Vassar's socials in a video.
The Miscellany News made a video and published an article on the Snort.
Notebook
Fia keeps a notebook (Feb 2nd-present) to write about the experience. In it they describe their building process, draw real and hypothetical maps of the structure, write about the Snort's meaning and take notes on artistic inspiration (including conversations with peers and with professors) and plan for future snow architecture on campus.
Artwork
Fia has made many theoretical and representative floor plans of the Snort, and has drawn sketches of the Snort in ballpoint pen. For their Color (Art 108) midterm they made three small chalk pastel drawings on black paper. As their Drawing 1 (Art 103) final they made four large chalk pastel drawings.
- Chalk Pastel drawings of The Snort
-
Part 1- Melting Snort -
Part 2- Huddled Inside -
Part 3- The Council Chamber -
Part 4- The Picnic
The Chalk pastels were all on 18x24 black construction paper. In Part 1, the sky can be seen through the melted ceiling, and the pile of snow from the courtyard can be seen through the old slide. A hole on the right reveals the shadowy first chamber, and trees beyond the original entrance. Part 2 is based on a photo from the second night where we crowded Reave, Fia, Melody, Quin and Sophia into the one chamber. Part 3 shows the view through the council chamber from the latest entrance into the courtyard. Above one of the council chairs, food coloring had been added by anonymous visitors as cave paintings. Part 4 is based on a photo taken by Asher and Valentin during the Snort picnic before winter break. Fia, Parker and Reave sit inside of the bench room on top of a plastic sheet and a picnic blanket, and Valentin's boot leans against the wall.
History
It snowed. We built. It melted.
Current state
Fia collapsed the Snort over spring break, and the very final remnants melted on March 25th. Fia did an independent study on Snow Architecture, and they will continue to update this page.