The project considers two types of bricks common in Mexico: regular bricks, either handmade in artisan kilns or mass-produced, and patterned bricks made through extrusion. Focusing on broken and discarded bricks, I observed that they typically fracture along their length, preserving a consistent width shared across typologies.

Using this shared dimension, the project proposes a method of laying broken bricks along an arc, producing offsets that strengthen the wall assembly. Responding to low-resolution construction needs, the structure takes on an elliptical form that can be set out using two posts and a string. Like toolpaths in additive manufacturing, construction progresses outward and upward.

As bricks are designed for compression, the project leverages the mass of the wall and the strength of the ellipse to anchor a tensile roof. This method creates two surface conditions: smooth along the grain of the brick layout and rough against it, emphasizing the wall’s thickness and weight.

The building also addresses limited access to clean water near Xochimilco. Its large roof collects rainwater, directing it into two cisterns within the wall—one for internal agricultural use and the other as a public water source.