Welcome. I invite you to join me in my journey to envision and create. I'm inspired to make things with deep meaning that positively transform people and places.
Erik J. Barth, AIA
BARTHITECTURE
RECENT WORK
02/2022
The Valley Sanctuary will provide the residents and visiting guests of Waterville Valley, NH with a unique space to host gatherings such as wedding ceremonies, memorial/funeral services, weekly or monthly religious services, concerts, art exhibits, dance and theater performances, and more. There are currently no other facilities like this in Waterville Valley, despite an expressed need from community members. The Valley Sanctuary is intended to be an open and welcoming place for people of all religious beliefs to come together in unity. There is no association with any particular religion or denomination. The building will serve as a distinctive sacred space for gathering that will bring significant additional business into the Valley. The addition of a project like this will function to complete the town center. My role as the sole design architect and 501C3 nonprofit organization committee member is integral to the vision and realization of this high impact community project.
03/2021
the basin
‘The Basin’ is a contextually sensitive design response to a Gensler design competition to envision a pavilion in the heart of a new mixed use development. The design employs a curved CLT curvilinear structure under a recycled plastic shell with integrated photovoltaics. The entire structure is designed to collect and retain rainwater on site for localized irrigation. The hydrological cycle is celebrated through the public water feature ‘basin’ situated centrally on the site.
03/2020
Our entry was a finalist among many qualified applicants for the Prefontaine Memorial Competition, hosted by SERA and Portland Track.
A heightened state of euphoria, precarious, yet balanced. The roar of thousands amidst the backdrop of the whispering fir trees. Breaking through lines of expectation and physical limits, she can feel Pre’s glory on the track, if only for an afternoon. Her breathing slows after completing part of the newly designed 26.2 mile route around Eugene. As Pre’s Rock comes into view, she thinks back on the many stone waypoint statues that have guided her to this sacred place. Due to the new Prefontaine Memorial Trail, the previously fragmented pieces of the beautiful Eugene trail system are finally woven into a cohesive whole.
The culmination of her run is this powerful place of repose and memory. A granite form emerging from the hillside ushers her out beyond the crash site into the tree canopy. She places her finishers medal from the first annual Pre’s Marathon on one of the many rock shelves of the monument and peers through the structure over the Willamette River. In the valley below, the silhouettes of runners follow the riverside trail. She measures her steps as she reflectively paces down the curvilinear walkway. Etched into the floating stone masses are names and records from years past, with spaces left for future champions. Hand against the smooth rock, she thinks of the sacrafice, the joy, and the pain that brought her to the finish line. Nearing the end of the straightaway, she pauses and gazes down over the city. The sunlight glistens off the dome of the new Hayward Field Complex as the sun sets over Eugene. The unwavering spirit of Prefontaine echoes throughout the landscape and dwells here amidst the skyline.
01/2019
Our entry to the Maine Mass Timber Design Competition won a merit based on the critique of peers throughout the country. Utilizing modular prefabrication, we created a destination in the heart of the 100 mile wilderness in Maine that showcases the unique capabilities of mass timber design.
The series of cabins are accessed only by foot, a short route from the AT. The fully prefabricated modules could theoretically be arrayed at any site. A passive house envelope and energy system coupled with a light touch on the land makes the form cohesive with ecologically minded clients, be they the Appalachian Mountain Club or a family looking for a place to escape.