Origins // MATERIAE PALIMPSEST is a project that focuses on its potential rather than on what it actually does. It explores the possibilities of traditional Moroccan skills. Through its multi-scale approach, it is a source of inspiration for future generations to [re]think, [re]use, [re]adapt these construction techniques. MATERIAE PALIMPSEST was born out of the need/desire to identify new ways of thinking that start with earthen architecture. It can have a tangible impact or at least help us ask the right questions about some of the urgent contemporary issues we face. MATERIAE PALIMPSEST tells the story of a process, a physical and immaterial work in progress. It is, at the same time, a symbolic and a material construction (also understood here as a narrative construction). A material construction where different layers of materials and objects unveil Morocco’s geological treasures and technical expertise. There are two parts: A lower part (which we will call “product”) where A square grid of three by three, which organizes and composes the space, supports eight groups of nine columns. These seventy two vertical elements of varying height stand on a dirt floor, arranged around a central gathering place, or agora. Each element is a distinct entity that exists autonomously and informs us about its various construction techniques and materials. They demonstrate the genius of traditional Moroccan skills. The upper part (which we will call “tools”) materializes the building process through construction tools suspended from a wood structure on the ceiling. These two horizontal levels face each other, dialogue, and meet through a hologram projection at the center of the pavilion, the agora, where the artisan who is the bearer and transmitter of this expertise is celebrated.